Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis


Date posted: December 1, 2021

Yusuf Özmen, a cancer patient who has been sentenced to 8 years, 9 months in prison due to his alleged links to the Gülen movement, has recently been sent back to prison after the supreme court of appeals upheld the prison sentence.

According to the Kronos news portal, Although a report issued by the Erzurum Atatürk University hospital committee has advised against his imprisonment, Özmen currently stays at Erzurum H Type High Security Prison.

The purge-victim man is accused of having membership in the Gulen group, which the Turkish government accuses of masterminding a coup attempt on July 15, 2016. The group denies any involvement.

Following the coup attempt, the Turkish government launched a massive crackdown on followers of the movement under the pretext of an anti-coup fight as a result of which more than 130,000 people were removed from state jobs while in excess of 30,000 others including elderly people, pregnant women or those who have just given birth and ailing people are still in jail, and some 600,000 people have been investigated on allegations of terrorism. 

Source: Turkey Purge , August 15, 2021


Related News

Gulen’s Outreach for Alevis

Zaman newspaper’s journalist Huseyin Gulerce’s words ‘ The government has been putting the Alevis off for seven years. This is a shame’  received support from the Alevis. Huseyin Gulerce, one of the leading figures of the Fethullah Gulen community (Gulen or Hizmet movement) and a journalist for the Zaman newspaper said that the AK Party […]

The demise of Turkish democracy

A total of 84 American foreign policy experts have written a bipartisan letter to US President Barack Obama, expressing concern that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s autocratic actions and demagoguery are not only subverting Turkey’s political institutions and values but also endangering the US-Turkey relationship.

Turkish PM Yıldırım names July 15 coup attempt as ‘project’ he did not like

In remarks that fueled suspicions even further that the Turkish government was involved in a failed coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said on Thursday that July 15 was a “project” he did not like or approve of.

Fethullah Gulen’s opinion on Turkey today

“As the coup attempt unfolded, I fiercely denounced it and denied any involvement,” wrote Gulen, who has been living in self-exile in the US since 1999. “Furthermore, I said that anyone who participated in the putsch betrayed my ideals. Nevertheless, and without evidence, Erdogan immediately accused me of orchestrating it from 5,000 miles away.

“Peaceful Coexistence” – Workshop Organized Jointly by KADIP and Korean Religious Leaders

Intercultural Dialogue Platform (KADIP), whose vision is to set up bridges between different cultures and faiths, welcomed religious leaders from Korea in Istanbul. KADIP and Korean Conference on Religion and Peace (KCPR; an institution that brings together representatives of 7 different faiths) jointly organized a workshop entitled “Turkey-Korea: Peaceful Coexistence” which took place at the headquarters […]

Int’l press organizations call for release of journalist Keneş, condemn arrest

New York-based press advocacy group the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called on Turkish authorities to immediately release Today’s Zaman Editor-in-Chief Bülent Keneş, condemning the arrest as a “relentless crackdown” on the press.

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

The system is the root cause of corruption

Political Activism for Peaceful Coexistence in Rumi and Gulen

Gülen extends condolences for death of former deputy PM Arınç’s brother

In Turkey, The Man To Blame For Most Everything(!) Is A U.S.-Based Cleric

Anonymous witnesses fail to identify suspects they earlier tipped off as Gulenist

Why Is Turkey Targeting Hizmet? Questions about Erdoğan’s Post-Coup Crackdown

U.S. Judge Tosses Suit Against Reclusive Muslim Cleric

Copyright 2026 Hizmet News