
Promotional videos show him meeting with Pope John Paul II in the Vatican in the 1990s. Supporters describe Gulen as a moderate Muslim cleric who champions interfaith dialogue.

I call on you again, after there was a coup attempt. Either arrest Fethullah Gulen or return him to Turkey. “I call on the United States and President Barack Obama. The 75-year old imam went into self-imposed exile when he moved from Turkey to the United States in 1999 and settled in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania. He later pointed across the Atlantic, to a small, leafy Pennsylvania town that is home to his bitter rival: Fethullah Gulen, a reclusive cleric who leads a popular movement called Hizmet. Selahattin Sevi/APĮrdogan quickly blamed low-ranking military officers who rebelled against their superiors.

In this 2013 file photo, Turkish Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen is pictured at his residence in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania. But not before 290 people were killed and more than 1,400 people were injured. Within a few hours – during which gunshots were heard at the presidential palace – the Turkish National Intelligence unit claimed the coup was over. “Go to the streets and give them their answer,” Erdogan said.

Speaking to a CNN Turk anchor who held her phone so viewers could see it, he urged people to take to the streets to stand up to the military faction behind the uprising. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed the nation via FaceTime.

Watch CNN Turk’s final moments on air before soldier shut it down Shortly before midnight local time, a faction of the military issued a statement, saying the “political administration that has lost all legitimacy has been forced to withdraw.” Media outlets, including CNN Turk, said they’d been forced off air, and social media experienced outages. Burak Kara/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks on CNNTurk via Facetime.
