Gulen, accused coup mastermind, dies in US at 83
Fetullah Gulen has died at age 83, Turkish media reported on Monday. Gulen was an Islamic preacher accused by Ankara of organizing the failed coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in 2016. The cleric had been residing in the U.S.
9:28 AM EDT, October 21, 2024
Media associated with Gulen reported that he passed away on Sunday evening at a hospital in Pennsylvania due to circulatory system failure.
Gulen was the leader of the Hizmet (Service) religious movement, inspired by Sufism. Ankara describes Gulen's supporters' network as FETO and considers it a terrorist organization.
The Turkish authorities accuse Gulen, who has been in self-imposed exile in the U.S. since the late 1990s, of a long-running campaign to weaken the state by infiltrating its institutions, including the military, police, and judiciary.
The foiled coup in 2016: Thousands were injured
During the night of July 15 to 16, 2016, a group of officers from the Turkish armed forces attempted a coup to overthrow the president. During the coup attempt, about 250 people were killed, and over 2,000 were injured.
The cleric, a former ally turned enemy of Erdogan, denied any involvement in the 2016 coup attempt and emphasized that the movement he led is a network of peaceful non-governmental organizations.
After the failed coup in Turkey, mass arrests and job dismissals ensued. Critics of Erdogan claim that the leader used the coup attempt as a pretext to crack down on political opponents.
