Erdoğan calls for expanded witch hunt against Gülen followers


Date posted: June 26, 2017

Having purged more than 150,000 people from state jobs and jailed over 50,000 due to alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement, Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan on Sunday called on people to inform on activities of Gülen followers, saying that if they fail to do so, they will be held responsible.

“Wherever you know of or find a member of FETÖ [a derogatory term coined by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government and Erdoğan to refer to members of the Gülen movement] you will report them to us. If you do not inform us, you will held be responsible,” said Erdoğan during an event organized by the İstanbul branch of his AKP to mark Eid al-Fitr.

“We will hold those who divide the Ummah to account,” he added.

Turkey survived a military coup attempt on July 15 that killed over 240 people and wounded more than a thousand others. Immediately after the putsch, the AKP government along with President Erdoğan pinned the blame on the Gülen movement.

Fethullah Gülen, who inspired the movement, strongly denied having any role in the failed coup and called for an international investigation into it, but President Erdoğan — calling the coup attempt “a gift from God” — and the government initiated a widespread purge aimed at cleansing sympathizers of the movement from within state institutions, dehumanizing its popular figures and putting them in custody.

Turkey has suspended or dismissed more than 150,000 judges, teachers, police officers and civil servants since July 15.

According to a report by the state-run Anadolu news agency on May 28, 154,694 individuals have been detained and 50,136 have been jailed due to alleged Gülen links since the failed coup attempt.

The AKP government has seized a total of 942 companies with a total value of TL 40.5 billion since the failed coup attempt, according to a statement from Deputy Prime Minister Nurettin Canikli.

The total equity capital of the seized companies is TL18.1 billion, while their combined turnover is TL 21.5 billion, according to a Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) report.

Together the seized companies employ a workforce of 44,868.

Source: Turkish Minute , June 26, 2017

Tags: | | |


Related News

Scholars: Misconceptions of Islam still abound

SEVGI AKARÇEŞME, İSTANBUL The subject of misconceptions of Islam dominated the debates at the international conference organized by the Foundation of Journalists and Authors (GYV) and Fatih University in İstanbul today. The event, titled “The Practice of Coexistence in Islamic Civilization and Contemporary Interpretations,” started on Friday with the participation of international scholars and leading […]

Ankara’s soft-power dilemma

Turkey’s major assets in terms of successful diplomacy and soft-power policy included Turkish schools opened by the Hizmet movement all around the world; the International Turkish Language Olympiads organized by the same group; business associations within and outside the borders of Turkey; intercultural and interfaith dialogue societies; foreign language publications of Turkish society; Turkish hospitals in several countries; and Turkish international humanitarian aid organizations.

GYV warns on provocative remarks, urges respect for peaceful protests

The Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) on Friday called for the government to refrain from provocative statements that may undermine peace in the society and to respect the right of freedom of assembly, while denouncing the violence displayed in mass protests across Turkey that was triggered by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) attacks on the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani.

Turkish authorities withdraw license of station linked to PM Erdogan’s opponents

Fatih Karaca, head of the media unit of Ipek group of companies, said Thursday Turkey’s radio and television watchdog revoked the license of KanalTurk television, citing a 2010 court decision. He maintained that the decision against the station — which is linked to a movement led by U.S.-based moderate Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen — was “politically-motivated.”

GYV: PM’s discriminatory rhetoric undermines social peace

Arguments and discriminatory rhetoric used by the prime minister against the Hizmet movement spoil the emotional well-being of our people; undermine social peace and prepare the groundwork for violence by sowing the seeds of hatred in society, the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) said in a forceful statement published on its website on Thursday.

Turkey, The great purge – Four lives upturned by Erdogan’s ‘cleansing.’ Episode 3 – Omer

It was a tweet that set it all off. An innocuous post that plunged Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu into a personal, administrative and political hell — and a private trauma that has publicly exposed a growing rift within Turkey’s Islamists.

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

Erdoğan’s game plan for Hizmet

4-year-old visits dad in jail on Children’s Day wearing T-shirt with newborn brother’s picture

Imam in the Middle

Commemorations for former President Özal, supporter of Turkish schools abroad

Erdoğan…a factionist PM?

Corruption investigation: Questions that will hound PM Erdoğan

Erdoğan gov’t abusing regulatory agencies to punish opponents

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News