The Turkish Supreme Court of Appeals has rejected the Chief Prosecutor’s Office’s objection to the acquittal of scholar Fethullah Gulen, which was upheld by the appeals court in early March. Gulen had been charged with “establishing an illegal organization”. The objection was soundly defeated by a 16 to 7 vote.
Fethullah Gulen’s acquittal has been officially registered a third time following the objection of the Chief Prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalçinkaya.
GULEN ACQUITED 3 TIMES
The Supreme Court of Appeals approved the previous decision of acquittal of Gulen by a 16 to 7 majority. Therefore Gulen’s acquittal has been registered irrevocably by the top court in Turkiye.
FIRST ACQUITAL
Gulen was tried on charges of “establishing an illegal organization to undermine the secular structure of the state. The court ruled that Gulen did not commit any of the crimes alleged by prosecutor Nuh Mete Yuksel and upheld Gulen’s acquittal.
SECOND ACQUITAL
The decision of acquittal was appealed and the 9th Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Appeals decided that Fethullah Gulen did not commit any of the mentioned crimes and upheld Gulen’s acquittal unanimously.
Slandering Turkish schools is treason according to well-known politician
In an interview with the Cihan news agency, Durak showed reaction to Erdoğan’s order to the ambassadors and he visited some of the Turkish schools in foreign countries. “Children of prime ministers and presidents and high-level bureaucrats are sent to these schools opened in Africa and many parts of the world… Many significant people are given education in these schools. I am of the opinion denouncing these schools to the ambassadors instead of supporting them is equal to treason,” said Durak.
[Hizmet’s] Prep schools and civilized debate
The prep-school debate has recently revisited Turkey’s agenda after periodically ebbing and flowing since the 1980s. For some time, the government has been mulling its plan to transform the prep schools. However, when Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that they would shut down the prep schools, tensions skyrocketed.
Media freedom in Turkey takes another blow
On Dec. 25, Mahir Zeynalov sent out two tweets. “The first tweet contained a link to a news report about the second wave of a massive graft operation and how police blocked a raid involving more than 40 suspects, including Saudi businessman Yasin al-Qadi — listed as a specially designated terrorist by the United States,” Today’s Zaman reported Jan. 31. Zeynalov’s tweets are no longer present on his Twitter account. “’Turkish prosecutors order police to arrest al-Qaeda affiliates, Erdogan’s appointed police chiefs refuse to comply,’ read the first tweet. In the second tweet, Zeynalov shared a news report detailing al-Qaeda suspects’ escape from the country after police chiefs blocked the raid on Dec. 25.”
Woman detained during visit to imprisoned husband on Valentine’s Day
İ.A.O. was detained when she stopped by the Trabzon prison on Valentine’s Day in a bid to visit her husband H.O., who had been earlier jailed as part of the government’s post-coup witch hunt. The couple’s 6-year-old son, Y.O. was left under his relatives’ care and İ.A.O was ultimately arrested by a court ruling.
Local NGOs urge Georgian gov’t to avoid returning Turkish teacher back home
Eight non-governmental organizations have called on the Georgian government to refrain from returning detained Turkish teacher to back home where “he will be possibly subjected to political persecution, torture, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment. “[He] will have no access to fair trial,” said a statement, released on May 31.
Helping hands to Kosova
Turkey extended a helping hand to Kosova, the ninth poorest country of the world, through Kimse Yok Mu Relief Foundation. Responding to cries of the orphans in the country, which gained independence in 2008, Kimse Yok Mu Relief Foundation distributed a variety of supplies ranging from sewing machines to goreceries, stationeries to toys. Aids have been distributed to those who became widows and orphans for the sake of their country’s independence. Among volunteers, there were Mujgan Koralturk, who plays Dilan character in the famous series ‘Tek Turkiye’, and Aslihan Erkisi, a famous vocal artist.
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