Who is behind the coup in Turkey?

Who is Fethullah Gulen?

Seemingly, Washington always readily has a second person in line to tackle other governments, it is for sure. Few weeks back when Mr Tayyub Erdogan made a statement for Russia, the world community had the apprehension that it may go against Mr Erdogan and Washington may not be happy with his statement.

Now, the Associated Press has reported that a lawyer for the Turkish government, Robert Amsterdam said that “there are indications of direct involvement” in the coup attempt by Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric who is living in exile in Pennsylvania. He said he and his firm “have attempted repeatedly to warn the U.S. government of the threat posed” by Gulen and his movement. According to Turkish intelligence sources, he said that there are signs that Gulen is working closely with certain members of military leadership against the elected civilian government.

The president of a group that promotes Gulen’s ideas (the New York-based Alliance for Shared Values) denied the charges. Y. Alp Aslandogan told The Associated Press “we categorically deny such accusations and find them to be highly irresponsible.” Earlier in the evening, the alliance said that they condemn any military intervention in (the) domestic politics of Turkey.

Who is Fethullah Gulen?

Trained as an imam, or prayer leader, Fethullah Gulen gained notice in Turkey some 50 years ago, promoting a philosophy that blended a mystical form of Islam with staunch advocacy of democracy, education, science and interfaith dialogue. Supporters started 1,000 schools in more than 100 countries, including about 150 taxpayer-funded charter schools throughout the United States. In Turkey, they have run universities, hospitals, charities, a bank and a large media empire with newspapers, radio and TV stations.

Turkish President Recip Tayyub Erdogan has long accused Gulen of plotting to overthrow the officially secular government from a gated 26-acre compound in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains. Gulen is rarely seen in public and has been put on trial in absentia at least three times.

Why doesn’t the US deport him?

The U.S. has shown little inclination to send Gulen back to Turkey. The Justice Department has declined to comment on Gulen’s case. In an interview with the AP early this year, Aslandogan, of the Alliance for Shared Values, said that the United States has a long tradition of democracy and rule of law. They will see that these are politically oriented charges, and they will not allow Erdogan to spread his ambition into the United States.

What is the status of legal claims against Gulen in the US?

Last month, a lawyer representing the Turkish government said he would continue exposing Gulen’s “unlawful conduct” one day after a federal judge in Scranton, Pennsylvania, dismissed his lawsuit against the cleric. “Despite the outcome of this ruling, a very clear message has been sent to Gulen and his co-conspirators in the Poconos: the days of impunity are numbered, and your unlawful conduct will be brought to light,” lawyer Robert Amsterdam said. The suit contended Gulen ordered sympathetic police, prosecutors and judges in Turkey to target members of a rival spiritual movement critical of his teachings. U.S. District Judge Robert Mariani ruled the claims did not belong in U.S. courts.

Some of the U.S. schools have been investigated by the FBI amid allegations of financial mismanagement and visa fraud. One of the most explosive claims is that the schools are importing Turkish teachers to identify impressionable students and indoctrinate them into Gulen’s movement, sometimes called Hizmet, Turkish for “service.” In May, a complaint filed with Texas education officials accused a network of charter schools associated with the Gulen movement of abusing a visa program to import large numbers of Turkish teachers and violating state and federal laws by paying them more than American teachers.

The complaint also asserted that the network, Harmony Public Schools, skirts competitive bidding rules to award contracts to Turkish vendors. Harmony has denounced the complaint as politically motivated and without merit.

In a statement on Friday 15th July 2016, the Alliance for Shared Values said that for more than 40 years, Fethullah Gulen and Hizmet participants have advocated for, and demonstrated their commitment to, peace and democracy. He said that they have consistently denounced military interventions in domestic politics and that they condemn any military intervention in domestic politics of Turkey. He showed his concern about the safety and security of Turkish citizens. He said that comments by pro-Erdogan circles about the movement are highly irresponsible.

What are Gulen’s days like?

An AP reporter was given a tour of Gulen’s Pennsylvania compound this year but was unable to see or interview him. He spends hours a day in prayer and meditation and goes out rarely, mostly to see doctors for ailments that include heart disease and diabetes, according to Aslandogan. Gulen’s living quarters are lined with books on shelves that also hold jars filled with soil from various regions of Turkey.

It is considered that Gulen is backed, funded and safeguarded by the U.S. government surreptitiously … which means they always keep a person in hand …. WHY? … To threat the allies governments or to blackmail them or to keep them tight with their policy?

Fethullah Gulen, the Turkish cleric whom President Recep Tayyub Erdogan of Turkey has accused of inspiring the coup attempt against his government, gave a rare interview on Saturday 16th July 2016, at his compound at SAYLORSBURG, Pennsylvania, in which he denied involvement in the coup, but compared Mr. Erdogan’s administration to that of the Nazi SS.

While decrying the coup attempt, Mr. Gulen also acknowledged that he could not rule out involvement by his followers, saying he is unsure who his followers are in Turkey.

Mr. Gulen has lived in self-imposed exile in the United States since the late 1990s. At the time, he was accused of attempting to promote a radical Islamic state in Turkey, according to his created version of Islam. At one point, the United States government tried unsuccessfully to have Mr. Gulen deported because it said his visa had been improperly granted. A federal judge in Pennsylvania blocked that move.

In a televised speech on Saturday 16th July 2016, President Erdogan said the United States should extradite Mr. Gulen to Turkey; Secretary of State John Kerry said earlier in the day that he would review any extradition requests for Mr. Gulen.

“Obviously, we would invite the government of Turkey, as we always do, to present us with any legitimate evidence that withstands scrutiny,” Mr. Kerry said during a visit to Luxembourg. “And the United States will accept that and look at it and make judgments about it appropriately.”

Mr. Gulen’s network controls billion-dollar business interests such as media companies, banks and construction firms. His operations have attracted a great deal of scrutiny by the United States government, particularly related to his movement’s charter schools, which have imported hundreds of Turkish teachers, many of them scientists with advanced degrees. Recently, Mr. Erdogan’s government filed a complaint against Mr. Gulen’s network of more than 30 schools in Texas.

Why Mr Gulen is under protection of the United States Government is a big question because on the other side Washington claims Turkey as their allies in the region. Is it true that Washington playing duplicitous role always holds a trump card for every country even if they are closest allies?