5,166 Turkish citizens sought asylum in Germany during January-November


Date posted: December 25, 2016

Germany received asylum applications from a total of 5,166 Turkish citizens during the January-November period of 2016, according to a story in Deutsche Welle on Sunday.

Responding to a question from the Funke Mediengruppe, the German government has announced that 5,166 Turkish citizens have sought asylum in Germany, noting that 80 percent of them are of Kurdish origin.

According to data from the German Federal Ministry of the Interior, there has been a rapid rise in the number of Turkish people seeking asylum in Germany since a failed coup attempt on July 15.

While the number of Turkish citizens who sought asylum in Germany in January 2016 was 109, this figure rose to 702 for the month of November alone.

Yet, the German government has declined to establish a link between the rise in asylum applications from Turkish citizens and the coup attempt.

A statement from the Funke Mediengruppe said the German government does not give any credit to the speculation about the possible reasons for the rise in the number of asylum applications.

Source: Turkish Minute , December 25, 2016


Related News

Turkey: ‘Exclusion for all’ state

Indeed, just last week a columnist in a pro-government daily argued that officials in certain government institutions have been expelled over their alleged ties to the Hizmet movement. This is no different from a witch hunt. In a civilized society, expelling qualified professionals because of their sympathy for a religious and social movement can only be described as discrimination.

Deviation, crisis and opportunities…

The recent crisis going on between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the Hizmet movement is indeed not just a struggle between the two actors. It means much more than that. This fight represents a struggle between democracy and autocracy, freedom and oppression and a harmonious society and a polarized society.

Turkey detains Mozambican software developer over links to Gülen movement

Helton Silva Malambane, a software developer from Mozambique who previously worked with the now-shut-down Fatih University, was detained by police at his residence in İstanbul over links to the Gülen movement, whose sympathizers the government accuses of masterminding a failed coup attempt on July 15. Twenty-seven-year-old Malambane was detained after police received anonymous tips about him.

Turkey’s Post-Coup Purge and Erdogan’s Private Army

A year later, Western intelligence officials and top Turkey analysts aren’t nearly so sure of Gulen’s complicity. Earlier this year, German spy chief Bruno Kahl revealed that Ankara has failed to convince the BND foreign intelligence agency that Gulen was behind the ill-planned and executed coup plot. “Turkey has tried to convince us of that at every level, but so far it has not succeeded,” Kahl told the German weekly Der Spiegel in March.

[Part 4] Gülen calls for respect of diversity in Turkey to end polarization

Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who has inspired the popular civic and social movement called Hizmet, called for the respect of diversity in Turkey, expressing his concern over growing polarization in society.

More evidence Erdogan behind coup

While the narrative voiced by Erdogan and echoed by the Turkish press blamed Gülen exclusively, many Turks and diplomats quietly harbored suspicions that Erdogan planned and staged the coup himself as a Turkish equivalent of the Reichstag Fire. That may once have sounded like a fringe conspiracy, but increasingly it seems the likely genesis of events last July.

Latest News

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

Erdoğan’s Civil Death Project’ : The ‘politicide’ spanning more than a decade

Fethullah Gülen’s Vision and the Purpose of Hizmet

In Case You Missed It

Reps urge Federal Govt to intervene in Nigerian students’ detention in Turkey

AK Party Deputy Hakan Şükür resigns due to hostile moves against Hizmet movement

Rainer Hermann interviews Fethullah Gulen – Do good and let it unfold

An interview at a party-state

A useful guide to understanding the Hizmet-AK Party tension

Today’s Zaman offers condolences to families of mine victims

President Fox speaks about Fethullah Gulen and Gulen Movement

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News