Turkey slams Netherlands for granting FETO members asylum

Turkey on Wednesday criticised a decision by the Netherlands to approve asylum applications and residence permits for the people linked to the Fetullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey.

"It is unacceptable that the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service responded positively to the asylum applications of FETO members and granted them residence permits on the basis that personal information of the FETO-affiliated individuals might have been obtained by the Turkish authorities," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement.

Aksoy stressed that the 1951 Geneva Convention on the Status of Refugees stipulated that individuals who are wanted for terror crimes could not be granted refugee status.

"The Convention aims to prevent the abuse of the refugee status by terrorists," he added.

Aksoy added that Turkey's efforts to extradite FETO members will continue. 

"Our expectation and efforts towards the extradition of FETO members who are behind the July 15 treacherous coup attempt, claiming the lives of 251 innocent citizens and injuring thousands, will continue," Aksoy said.

"It should not be forgotten that this terrorist organisation is a threat not only to Turkey but also to every country where it operates and that international cooperation is of great importance in the fight against terrorism," he concluded.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup on July 15, 2016, which killed 251 people and injured nearly 2,200.

FETO is behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.