美国国家公共电台 NPR In Turkey, The Man To Blame For Most Everything Is A U.S.-Based Cleric

In Turkey, The Man To Blame For Most Everything Is A U.S.-Based Cleric  

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Turkey is adding even more charges to the crimes it blames on a cleric - a cleric who lives in the United States. The Turkish government already blamed Fethullah Gulen of orchestrating a failed coup 2 in Turkey from his home in Pennsylvania. Now, the government says he's to blame for everything from a mining disaster to traffic accidents. NPR's Peter Kenyon is covering this story from Istanbul. Hi, Peter.

PETER KENYON, BYLINE 3: Hi, Steve.

INSKEEP: So what did this man do, according to the Turkish government?

KENYON: Well, it's a pretty impressive list. You know, these come out day after day over a number of weeks, but when you stop and add them up, it's kind of amazing. You remember the shoot-down of the Russian fighter jet last November?

INSKEEP: OK.

KENYON: Well, the two Turkish pilots who were involved in that were arrested last month, charged with taking part in the coup effort. And then the Ankara mayor decided 4 that the plane shoot-down was their fault, too, as opposed to anyone else's mainly because of this cleric, Fethullah Gulen. There was a terrible mining disaster in 2014, 300 people killed. Company had a questionable 5 track record on safety.

But then, after the coup, a mine manager comes out and says, well, I think terrorists were involved, and he specifically mentioned the Gulenists. And then, just recently, there was that really horrific bombing at the wedding in Gaziantep - dozens killed, most signs pointing at the Islamic State. And then President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, maybe it was ISIS, but the Gulen movement could have had a hand, too; don't forget that. So they just keep coming.

INSKEEP: And when you say a movement, I guess that reminds us this guy is a leader of a large group. And it's alleged 6 that different followers 7 of his might have been involved with - well, it sounds like with just about everything.

KENYON: That's right. And it does - it's not just recent stuff. There was an infamous 8 murder of a Turkish-Armenian journalist. That's 2007. Few believed it was only the teenager originally accused, but now the case is open, and two Gulen-linked police chiefs are back in the picture. And then, when you get down to the local level, media is accusing him of everything from mysterious heart-attack deaths to suspicious traffic accidents. So it's all coming. And some of the claims do get quite extreme. Turkish media are quoting an indictment 9 written by a Turkish prosecutor 10, and it declares the Gulen movement was created by the CIA, as were, quote, "the Mormon Church and the Church of Scientology."

INSKEEP: And we should also mention that Fethullah Gulen has denied any wrongdoing in case after case after case. Do you have any sense about whether ordinary Turks believe all these accusations 11?

KENYON: Well, that's actually an interesting question. The public is getting barraged 12 with anti-Gulen attacks in the pro-government media every day. And most media don't even call it the Gulen movement, by the way. It's now FETO, and that stands for Fethullah Terrorist Organization. And it's also commonly called a terror cult 13. It's hard to know how it's all being received. But from talking to Turks, my impression is they could see how some Gulen followers might have been behind the coup attempt. But you bring up these other things, and then there's a fair bit of skepticism.

INSKEEP: Why is the government piling so many charges on this man?

KENYON: Well, some Turks see it as a strategic move with this extradition 14 request going on. If, in other words, there's so many things he's accused of, it becomes politically hard for Washington to say no. As we mentioned, Gulen denies any involvement. His lawyers say the government's allegations have a history of not bearing up under scrutiny 15. And there's this question of evidence that remains 16. It's only now that evidence that is coup-related is being compiled to be sent to Washington. So this extradition could well be a long process.

INSKEEP: A reminder 17 that that is going on now. Turkey is trying to get its hands on this man. Peter, thanks very much.

KENYON: You're welcome, Steve.

INSKEEP: NPR's Peter Kenyon is in Istanbul.