Gülen more dangerous than Bin Laden: Turkish EU minister

ANKARA

Turkish EU Minister Ömer Çelik. AA photo

U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, the main suspect behind the bloody July 15 coup attempt, is more dangerous than former al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, Turkey’s EU minister has said, while also criticizing the bloc for failing to stand by Turkey during the unrest.

“The head of the terrorists, Fethullah Gülen, is more dangerous than Osama Bin Laden,” EU Minister Ömer Çelik told a news conference on July 23.

The minister said he was surprised by the lack of visits from senior European Union figures one week after the attempted coup.

“We would expect officials of the European Union, European Parliament and European Council to visit Turkey to voice their support for the common democratic values we share by standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Turkey,” he said.

However, Çelik thanked all Turkey’s allies for their messages of support.

“There is no doubt that the values in danger are the common values of all of us,” Çelik said, adding: “We have enough power to protect our own democracy.”

Çelik said the aim of the current state of emergency was “to protect democracy, to protect the state of law, to protect the rights and liberties of our citizens and to protect peace in our country.”