President Erdogan's rival has died
Turkish preacher and politician Fethullah Gülen has died at the age of 83.
“Venerable Fethullah Gülen, who spent every moment of his life at the service of the blessed religion of Islam and humanity, walked today (Oct. 20) to the horizon of his soul,” reads the website of his movement ‘Herkul,’ which, by the way, is banned in Turkey.
Fethullah Gülen was regarded by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as the instigator of the July 2016 coup attempt. The Turkish president called the Gülen movement terrorist. Turkish authorities have since made more than 300,000 arrests, including in the police, judiciary and military. Nearly 700,000 people have been prosecuted, and 3,000, alleged to have played a role in the coup attempt, have been sentenced to life in prison.
(SR for Tagtik/Source: ANP/Illustration picture: Photo by Fatih Yürür on Unsplash)