News / Turkey

Turkish prosecutor says 1,000 prisoners could be freed over false accusation of Gulen links

Wednesday, 27 December 2017 5:40 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 27 December 2017 5:40 PM ]

Turkish plainclothes policemen detain a protester during a demonstration in support of two hunger strikers in Ankara, July 10, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

A Turkish prosecutor says some 1,000 people could be released from prison after being falsely accused of having ties with Fethullah Gulen, a US-based cleric whom Ankara blames for the failed coup of July 15, 2016.

Ankara Chief Prosecutor Yuksel Kocaman told journalists on Wednesday that Gulen's movement was believed to have developed a program that makes innocent people appear to be using ByLock, an encrypted messaging application that was allegedly used by his supporters for secret communication.

The use of ByLock is considered by Turkish prosecutors as evidence of membership in Gulen's movement.

Kocaman added that Gulen's movement developed the program to make it harder for authorities to identify real ByLock users.

Turkey witnessed the coup attempt when a faction of the Turkish military declared that the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was no more in charge of the country. However, over the course of two days, the putsch was suppressed.

The Turkish government accuses Gulen of having orchestrated the attempted coup. Gulen, a former Erdogan ally-turned-arch-foe, has denied the allegation.

Turkey has called on Washington to extradite Gulen, but the demand has not been taken heed of.

Turkey, which remains in a state of emergency since the coup, has been engaged in suppressing the media and opposition groups suspected to have played a role in the failed coup.

In a post-coup crackdown, Turkey has suspended or dismissed more than 150,000 judges, policemen, teachers, and civil servants and has arrested over 55,000 others.

Many rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have denounced Ankara’s heavy clampdown.

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