Gulen, the powerful cleric accused of orchestrating a Turkish coup, dies
NBCOCT 2024
Turkish Cleric Gulen Dies in US Exile
Above: Muhammed Fethullah Gülen Image copyright: Pictures from History/Contributor/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The Spin
Turkey has never provided much evidence for its elaborate allegations against Gulen and the US. Gulen had a controversial and complicated relationship with Erdogan. Given that Gulen and Erdogan were secularists, their differences were likely connected to the corruption charges against the president rather than religious beliefs.
Gulen’s long-standing ties to US interests, including alleged links to American intelligence agencies, make it completely reasonable to question whether he worked with Western powers to orchestrate the coup. Washington's refusal to extradite him, not to mention testimonies in Turkey, confirmed his followers were working to destabilize the Turkish government.
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© 2025 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 6.17.0