The nephew of the U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, deemed responsible for a failed coup in 2016 by the Turkish government, has reportedly been captured by Turkish agents, The Hill writes quoting Turkey’s state-run news outlet
Anadolu Agency reported Monday that Selahaddin Gulen, was detained and he’s now facing charges of membership in a terrorist organization. He was allegedly seized in an operation by Turkey’s national spy agency MIT, but it is not known where he was seized or when he was returned to Turkey.
In October 2020, Gulen, who is Turkish citizen and permanent U.S. resident, arrived in Kenya on a tourist visa, but was detained by immigration officials based on Interpol’s “red notice” alert for an alleged child molestation case Gulen was acquitted off in 2008.
Earlier this month, several days before his scheduled extradition hearing, his lawyer Jotham Okome Arwa informed that Gulen disappeared while on his way to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations headquarters.
The reported of Selahaddin Gulen detainment comes after Turkey had arrested a senior Gulen movement member earlier this month.
Turkish government has been targeting Fethullah Gulen, a former ally of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, for years as an alleged leader of the effort to oust the president afterwards led to a cracking down on opposition voices and detainment of roughly 100,000 people.
The Turkish government for years has demanded the extradition of Gulen, who now lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania, but the U.S. authorities have shown no intention of handing him over.
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