News / Turkey

Kazakhstan to repatriate any Turkish teacher, student linked to Gulen

Friday, 05 August 2016 5:54 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 06 August 2016 11:03 AM ]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, shakes hands with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev during a welcoming ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey, August 5, 2016. (Reuters)

Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev says Astana will repatriate any Turkish teacher or student linked to US-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara blames for the July 15 failed coup.

Nazarbayev, the first president to visit Turkey after the coup attempt, made the remarks at a news conference following his meeting with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Turkish capital Ankara on Friday.

Erdogan reportedly asked Astana to "take a step" after handing over a list of 33 Gulen-linked schools.

"If anyone among them is linked with terrorism... we will respond to Turkey's demands," Nazarbayev said at the joint press conference with Erdogan.

He stressed that the schools in Kazakhstan “are under state control.”

"We do not support anyone going against Turkey. This is not in our interest. Both sides' education ministries will control the schools by creating a working group," the Kazakh president stated.

"If there are teachers with links, we will send them back and ask the Turkish government to send other teachers."

Nazarbayev, however, stopped short of saying if his administration would shut down Gulen-linked schools.

At least 246 people were killed and more than 2,100 others sustained injuries when an army faction, using hijacked helicopters and tanks, clashed with government troops and people on the streets of the Turkish capital and the city of Istanbul on July 15.

Shortly after the coup bid was declared over on July 16, President Erdogan accused Gulen of being behind the coup attempt.

Gulen denied any involvement and warned that the blame game could be a ploy by the ruling Justice and Development Party to cement its grip on power.

So far, tens of thousands have been sacked, suspended or detained as part of the Turkish government’s crackdown on the coup plotters and those linked to Gulen.

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