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

AK Party promises more despotism if it wins big in local polls

Since the Dec. 17 corruption and bribery probe, Prime Minister Erdoğan has threatened to order an “operation” against certain civil society organizations and business groups that have voiced demands for the prime minister and his government to be held accountable in the face of alleged irregularities.

119 people in Turkey died due to crackdown on Gülen movement in 2019 (430 people died since 2016)

At least 119 people lost their lives in Turkey due to an ongoing government-led crackdown on the Gülen movement. Many people including children have drowned in the waters of the Aegean Sea or the Maritsa River while trying to flee the crackdown.

Pilot who flew Erdoğan on coup night fired from Turkish Airlines over Gülen links

Barış Yurtseven, the pilot of the plane that brought Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to İstanbul on the night of a failed military coup attempt last July, was fired from Turkish Airlines in February over alleged links to the Gülen movement.

Prominent businessman Akın İpek pledges huge support to Kimse Yok Mu

A huge support campaign has grown to back Kimse Yok Mu after the recent Cabinet decree which banned the charity’s ability to accept public donations without government approval. Koza İpek Holding Chairman Akın İpek has donated 1000 animals for Eid al-Adha, the Feast of the Sacrifice.

Cabinet bans charity Kimse Yok Mu from collecting donations

The Taraf daily ran a story arguing that the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government planned to remove Kimse Yok Mu’s public interest status, which would prevent it from collecting donations. The report argued that the proposal was pending with the Cabinet, expecting it to take effect before the Eid al-Adha holiday.

How to Fix Turkey’s Fall From International Favor

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent attack on the West for “hate speech” and misattributing terrorism during the Paris attacks is ironic. Erdogan is erroneously doing both already: labeling the Gulen movement a terrorist organization and using hate speech to characterize it. In fact, Erdogan is cracking down on religious groups more heavily than ever before.

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

Rumi Forum Fellowship Program 2015

Turkish cleric calls for international body to examine coup charges

Turkey’s purges continue a year after failed coup

Police, inspectors raid Gülen-inspired schools in Manisa for 3rd time

What does Turkey deserve?

Tevere Institute organized an Iftar Dinner for Diplomats in Vatican

Gülen worries fake news could associate new terror attacks, assassinations in Turkey with him

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News