UN body drops consultative status of groups with Gülen links upon Turkish request

NEW YORK - Anadolu Agency

A major United Nations agency on April 19 canceled the consultative status of three groups linked to the U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, a move hailed as a victory by the Turkish mission to the global body.United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the six principal U.N. organs, came to a consensus after voting to terminate all affiliation with the Kimse Yok Mu Relief Foundation, the Journalists and Writers Foundation (JWF), and the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON).All three organizations were shut down in Turkey for their support for what the government refers to as the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) following the July 2016 coup attempt.The 54-member ECOSOC also canceled consultative status applications for two other Gülen-linked groups.Consultative status gives non-governmental organizations various rights of access and engagement, including United Nations passes, the right to be represented at designated meetings, and the right to have their documents translated and circulated as official U.N. documents.Kimse Yok Mu had the status since 2010, while the JWF and TUSKON had the status since 2012.Turkey’s Permanent Mission to the U.N. praised the move as “an important success” in the fight against Gülenists in international agencies.The Gülen movement is widely believed to have masterminded last year’s thwarted coup.