6 yıl önce

Turkish opposition head backs Ankara on Gulen extradition

CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu says Ankara has sent enough evidence to US authorities to take legal action and urged Washington to extradite Fetullah Gulen, whose FETO organisation orchestrated the July 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.

AP

In the July 2016 file photo, Islamic cleric Fetullah Gulen (L) speaks to members of the media at his compound, in Saylorsburg, USA. Kemal Kilicdaroglu (R), leader of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) delivers a speech to supporters to outline the CHP's election manifesto and present MP candidates at a rally in Ankara, Turkey, Saturday, May 26, 2018.

The leader of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Monday said Ankara had sent enough documents to Washington for the extradition of the US-based leader of the Fetullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO), which masterminded the deadly 2016 coup attempt.

In a live interview on private broadcaster Kanal D in Istanbul, Kemal Kilicdaroglu said the documents that Turkey had sent to US authorities for Fetullah Gulen’s extradition were to take legal action.

His statements came after a four-person CHP delegation visited Turkey’s Justice Ministry to examine the documents submitted against Gulen.

The delegation handed him a report on the documents, said Kilicdaroglu.

"There is a three-page report that came to me. The same report was given to [CHP presidential candidate] Mr Muharrem Ince. There are some procedural shortcomings, but these are not vital procedural shortcomings. According to the documents [sent to America], Gulen must be extradited to us."

Turkish authorities have repeatedly criticised the US administration for not extraditing Gulen, despite submitting all the necessary documents against him.

FETO and its leader Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 in which officials say 251 people died and over 2,000 were injured.

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

SOURCE: AA