Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on President Obama to arrest or hand over a political rival who has lived in Pennsylvania since 1999, blaming him for an attempted military coup.

Speaking from Istanbul Saturday, Erdogan said that Fethullah Gulen, who exiled himself from Turkey and now lives in the Poconos, should be returned to the country to potentially face charges for the uprising that took place Friday night, The Guardian reported

ADVERTISEMENT

Earlier Saturday, Secretary of State John Kerry John Forbes KerryThe Memo: Warning signs flash for Trump on debates Divided country, divided church TV ads favored Biden 2-1 in past month MORE said the U.S. had not yet received an extradition request but would consider sending Gulen back, The Associated Press reported.

"We haven't received any request with respect to Mr. Gulen," Kerry said. "We fully anticipate that there will be questions raised about Mr. Gulen. And obviously we would invite the government of Turkey, as we always do, to present us with any legitimate evidence that withstands scrutiny. And the United States will accept that and look at it and make judgments about it appropriately."

Turkish government officials have been blaming Gulen for the coup, accusing him of orchestrating a plot to overthrow the government. However, the self-exiled cleric strongly condemned the coup attempt and said he had nothing to do with the uprising.

"As someone who suffered under multiple military coups during the past five decades, it is especially insulting to be accused of having any link to such an attempt. I categorically deny such accusations," Gulen said in a statement.

Gulen is a well known political figure in Turkey and often advocates for pro-Western Sunni Islam.

His movement, known as Hizmet, has followers in many countries of the world and appeals to the secular non-Islamist Turks.