Turkish Religious Leader Fethullah Gulen Passes Away in the US
- World News
- October 21, 2024
- No Comment
Prominent Turkish religious leader Fethullah Gulen, known for his criticism of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government, has passed away at the age of 83 while residing in the United States, Turkish media reported.
According to close sources, who confirmed the news on social media platform X, Gulen had been ill for some time and passed away last night at the hospital where he was undergoing treatment.
Fethullah Gulen came from a religious family, with his father serving as a mosque imam and his mother teaching Quran to children. He received his education at a madrasa and began his career as an imam and preacher.
It is noteworthy that in Turkey, imams and Friday prayer leaders are government employees. Gulen served as a preacher in Izmir for a significant period, where he initiated his religious and educational activities. He was a follower of renowned Turkish Sufi scholar Said Nursi and even authored a book on him.
In the 1970s, Gulen founded the influential Islamic movement known as ‘Hizmet’ (The Service). He became a well-known figure for promoting education, interfaith dialogue, and social services.
In 2016, Gulen was accused of orchestrating a failed coup against President Erdogan’s government. Since 1999, he had been living in self-imposed exile in the United States, and in 2017, following the coup attempt, Turkey revoked his citizenship.
The Turkish government had also demanded the extradition of the exiled religious leader from the US. Gulen was accused of leading his organization Hizmet to instigate a failed military coup against Erdogan’s government, with claims that he commanded warplanes, tanks, and helicopters during the attempted takeover, which resulted in the deaths of around 250 people.
Once an ally of President Erdogan, Gulen was later seen as an enemy of the state after the coup attempt, though he consistently denied all allegations. Despite the accusations, he remained a popular figure in Turkey, with significant support within the police and judiciary.
