Justice and Development (AK) Party's Istanbul deputy Metin Külünk
A ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party deputy on Friday described accusations by a German news channel against him as a "plot by Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ)", the group behind last year's defeated coup in Turkey.
The remark by Metin Külünk, AK Party's deputy for Istanbul, came after a program on ZDF claimed the politician had provided money to a boxing gang in Germany to go after critics of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The Osmanen Germania gang was also allegedly instructed to organize protests against last year's so-called Armenian genocide resolution passed by the German parliament, according to the report broadcast on the channel.
Külünk said in a meeting: "None of the activities or visits I made in my personal capacity or on behalf of the AK Party are illegal. On the contrary transparency has always been a priority."
He said the accusations to defame Erdoğan are typical to FETÖ.
"On one hand the German authorities allow the bloody PKK terror group and its supporters the freedom to blackmail, kidnap, organize protests and harass the Turkish society [in Germany], and on the other it defames Turkey through fictional accusations," he said.
He called the accusations an aim to subject Turks in Europe "to a cultural genocide".
Istanbul’s Chief Prosecutor İrfan Fidan said on Friday that a signed order by Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) ringleader Fetullah Gülen was the most concrete piece of evidence of Gülen ordering the release of his terrorists to date.Gülen in 2015 told FETÖ-linked judges to release police officers and senior members, including Samanyolu TV-owner Hidayet Karaca and fugitive former Deputy Police Chief Hüseyin Korkmaz. Korkmaz is testifying on the ongoing Reza Zarrab trial in New York.The letter was seized during an operation targeting the residence of Fevzi Yazıcı, the former art director of the FETÖ-affiliated Zaman newspaper, which is no longer in operation.The letter is dated Apr. 19, 2015 and was found amongst other digital documents Yazıcı brought from the U.S. Yazıcı returned to Turkey in April 2015 with close to 100 USB drives containing information about FETÖ following a brief stay in the U.S.On April 8, 2015, shortly before the release plot, Fevzi Yazıcı, who headed Zaman’s graphics department, traveled to the U.S. and returned to Turkey on April 18, according to Fidan, who said that Yazıcı brought the documents from Gulen with him.He said that it was a part of larger plot orchestrated by FETÖ members in Turkey in league with foreign intelligence services.“This document is the most concrete evidence of the individual order given to the members of the organization by the terrorist ringleader,” Fidan said.“Mustafa Başer and Metin Özçelik, who followed this instruction, immediately took action and released the suspects, which included Ali Fuat Yılmazer, Hüseyin Korkmaz, Nazmi Ardıç and Yasin Topçu,” he added.Turkish courts hand jail terms to 51 over FETÖ linksAfter receiving the order from Gülen, on Apr. 25,2015, then-judges and alleged FETÖ members Mustafa Baser and Metin Ozcelik released all 63 FETÖ suspects.The 10th Criminal Court of Peace in Istanbul ruled against the release order that same night and stopped the group from being freed.But Hüseyin Korkmaz, a fugitive alleged FETÖ member and former Turkish police supervisor, fled to the U.S. after being released in February 2016. He is currently testifying in a case against Mehmet Hakan Atilla, the former deputy CEO of Turkey's Halkbank, in a court case in New York.Yazıcı is one of 52 suspects in an investigation of the media structure of the FETÖ terror group.Gülen pursued a long-running campaign to overthrow the Turkish government through the infiltration of state institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary, forming what is commonly known as the parallel state.A total of 249 people were martyred and nearly 2,200 injured in the July 15 failed coup which was perpetrated by FETÖ, led by ringleader Gülen, who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania.FETÖ spends 'vast amount' to attack Turkey from USFETÖ fugitive admits receiving money from FBI46 people jailed across Turkey for FETÖ linksTurkey remands 135 FETÖ terror suspects
Evidence of Gülen ordering release of 63 FETÖ suspects emerges
Two separate courts in Turkey sentenced 51 people on Friday for being members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), the group behind last year's defeated coup, according to a security source.The 2nd High Criminal Court in the central Eskişehir province handed jail terms for up to seven years to 46 dismissed security personnel.A high criminal court in the central province of Sivas sentenced five people for up to 10 years in jail for being FETÖ members and using ByLock, an encrypted smartphone messaging app used by the group to communicate during and after the defeated coup attempt.Turkish authorities detain 24 FETÖ suspectsFETÖ spends 'vast amount' to attack Turkey from USFETÖ fugitive admits receiving money from FBIFETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gülen orchestrated the defeated coup attempt of July 15, 2016, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.Ankara also accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.
Turkish courts hand jail terms to 51 over FETÖ links
'Germany should use common sense'
He asked the German authorities to exercise "common sense" so that its judiciary and media does not become "a toy in the hands of PKK and FETÖ".
Separately, in an interview with Anadolu Agency, Külünk called on Germany to maintain positive relations with Turkey and end its cooperation with terror groups.
“Germany cannot establish strong connections with Turkey by embracing terrorist organizations like PKK, FETÖ, DHKP-C. They will strengthen by respecting the independence of the Republic of Turkey and acting upon the 250-years of friendly history,” he added.
More than 1,200 people, including security force personnel and civilians, have lost their lives since the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S., and EU -- resumed its decades-old armed campaign in July 2015.
FETÖ and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the July 15, 2016 coup attempt which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.
Regarding the evidences obtained by the German media, Külünk said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu was illegally wiretapped by Germany.
He also said the allegations are “directly targeting Turkey like in the [Rıza] Sarraf case” and affirmed they will seek their legal rights in Germany.
Sarraf last month accepted all the U.S. charges against him and agreed to cooperate as a witness against Mehmet Hakan Atilla, the former deputy CEO of Turkey’s state-run lender Halkbank.
Sarraf was detained last year in New York on charges of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran, while Atilla was arrested in the U.S. earlier this year on similar charges.