Gülen hints at lack of intel over attack

ISTANBUL

Islamic scholar and a prominent figure in Turkey’s political scene, Fettullah Gülen, issued a letter of condolence following the Aug. 20 attack Hürriyet photo

Islamic scholar and a prominent figure in Turkey’s political scene, Fettullah Gülen, issued a letter of condolence following the Aug. 20 attack in the southeastern province of Gaziantep that resulted in the deaths of nine civilians and the deaths of 10 Turkish security personnel when their minibus crashed into a ditch in the southeastern province of Şırnak Aug. 22.

“The terror attack in Gaziantep, which is the unity and social peace’s address, wounded us one more time. Evil groups have targeted even innocent children and played or are playing their dark games with innocent people. They aim to blacken the prosperity of these lands and block this nation’s way by their cursed attacks. They are trying to play us off against one another,” he said in a message published on the website of private broadcaster Samanyolu News yesterday. Gülen also said Turkey “needed to be more careful about intelligence.”

Gülen, who is renown with thousands of Turkish schools opened in more than a hundred countries, had been accused by opposition parties of organizing and manipulating Turkey’s judicial and security apparatus. A crisis occurred between the judiciary and the intelligence service in February after prosecutors ordered the detention of the head of the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT), Hakan Fidan. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had opposed prosecutors demand by saying “If you are going to arrest someone, arrest me.” Turkish Parliament then amended the applicable law, making interrogation of MİT’s head subject to the permission of the prime minister.