Kerry to visit Turkey amid strained ties after failed coup

An Istanbul court on Thursday issued an arrest warrant for Gulen, accusing him of ordering the coup aimed at ousting Erdogan.

Turkey’s state-run news agency says the ruling party has instructed its local branches and municipalities to purge themselves of followers of USA -based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused by the government of being behind the country’s failed July 15 coup.

Ankara has not yet made a formal extradition request, but the arrest warrant could be the prelude.

“I have repeatedly condemned the coup attempt in Turkey and denied any knowledge or involvement”.

Tayyip Erdogan, a Turkish president blame Gulen of organize the failed coup and utilize an extensive network of schools, charities and businesses in Turkey and overseas to penetrate state institutions.

Erdogan promised on Thursday to choke off the businesses, while an Istanbul court issued an arrest warrant for Gulen for “giving the instructions” for the coup attempt, in which more than 230 people were killed.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is vowing to go after businesses linked to a US-based Muslim cleric he accuses of having been behind Turkey’s failed July 15 coup. Washington for its part, has asked for evidence of the cleric’s involvement, and has said the extradition process must be allowed to take its course.

He says that would be even more the case if Turkey reintroduces the death penalty, as some have suggested since last month’s failed military coup.

The government has launched a crackdown in its wake that has seen over 60,000 people within the military, judiciary, civil service and education sector dismissed, detained or put under investigation. “We will cut off all business links, all revenues of Gulen-linked business”.

The president said that every cent that goes to the Gulen movement “is a bullet placed in a barrel to be fired against this nation”. “For now, those who are captured are the tip of the iceberg”. “In Africa, we know that they work as nurseries (for terror) and we want to warn them”.