Fethullah Gulen Calls Crackdown ‘Dark Pages’ in History – Responses to World Affairs Council of Philadelphia


Date posted: September 16, 2016

Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen whom Turkey accuses of masterminding July’s abortive coup again condemned the Turkish government crackdown on his supporters, saying Thursday that his “heart is aching.”

In videotaped remarks to the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, Fethullah Gulen said the Turkish government is using the attempted coup to justify persecuting his followers, who he said are being “subjected to oppression and tyranny, molestation and unlawful acquisition of their private properties.”


Related News

Pakistan – Side effects of the coup in Turkey

PakTurk Schools’ Parent-Teacher Association expressed concern that the government may hand over the school management to “a political entity”. The association has demanded of the government not to make an unwise political move, and investigate if there is anything wrong with their curriculum. “Turkey is a friendly country and we respect its democracy. But we should consider the future of 11,000 students of these schools,” the association expresses.

Nigeria: Our students in Turkey

Nigerian students studying in Turkey have been detained in airports after being interrogated like criminals. About 50 of them were detained in Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport for 11 hours; some were deported, even though they were bona fide students who were yet to complete their studies.

The Guardian view on Turkey’s repression: stop this stalemate

Turkey’s western allies are alarmed, but against a complex geopolitical backdrop, they have chosen discretion rather than valour. After the EU parliament last week voted to freeze EU accession talks with Turkey, Mr Erdoğan lashed out by threatening to open the country’s borders to migrants heading to Europe. This is tantamount to blackmail.

Gulen movement is of high interest to Moroccans

Morocco is among the first Arab countries where Turkish schools were established. The nation’s prominent scholars like Prof. Abbadi are closely following Fethullah Gulen, a religious scholar, who, with a civilization, individual and education-centered approach -rather than a political one- based on tolerance, offers the most effective cures for the Muslim world.

Nigeria – Our students should not be victims of Turkey’s high-handedness and authoritarianism

We strongly condemn the arrest, detention and deportation of some Nigerian students from Turkey’s capital city, Istanbul, over the botched coup in the country. The harassment and intimidation of our students by the Turkish Government over a matter that does not concern them is undiplomatic and utterly reprehensible. The Turkish government should not visit the punishment for the alleged actions of its political enemies on innocent Nigerian students.

Police takes careful approach on Turkish schools issue

The National Police is not in a hurry to deal with the Turkish government’s request to close nine international schools linked to Fethullah Gulen, who has been accused by Ankara of being behind the recent coup attempt in Turkey.

Latest News

Sacramento leaders gather for Iftar dinner in celebration of Ramadan

SEO Skill Suite: Tools for Keyword Research, Technical & Backlink Analysis

Turkish inmate jailed over alleged Gülen links dies of heart attack in prison

Message of Condemnation and Condolences for Mass Shooting at Bondi Beach, Sydney

Media executive Hidayet Karaca marks 11th year in prison over alleged links to Gülen movement

ECtHR faults Turkey for convictions of 2,420 applicants over Gülen links in follow-up to 2023 judgment

New Book Exposes Erdoğan’s “Civil Death Project” Targeting the Hizmet Movement

European Human Rights Treaty Faces Legal And Political Tests

ECtHR rejects Turkey’s appeal, clearing path for retrials in Gülen-linked cases

In Case You Missed It

Erdogan pushes further to replace Gülen schools in Africa to spread his ideology

Deputy PM Arınç opens Zaman University in Cambodia

Woman dismissed from job because she had surgery at hospital targeted by gov’t

Foreword to “The Gulen Movement: Civic Service without Borders”

Gov’t bid to close Turkish schools draws ire

Gülen’s curse was misquoted, misinterpreted, GYV chief says

The recent fight between Kemalo-Islamism and Civil Islam

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News