Erdogan Urges Obama to Extradite Fethullah Gulen Suspected of Coup Attempt

Sputnik News

20:56 16.07.2016(updated 20:57 16.07.2016)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday requested his US counterpart Barack Obama to extradite Turkish opposition cleric Fethullah Gulen, who has been reportedly linked to the coup attempt, to Turkey.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Late on Friday, Turkish authorities said that an attempted coup took place in the country. Erdogan urged Turkish citizens to take to streets, stating that the coup attempt was carried out by a small group within the military. Later, Erdogan and other officials have blamed Gulen staying in self-imposed exile in the United States and his supporters for the coup attempt.

Gulen himself denied the allegations.

"I hereby call on US President Obama to extradite that person living on a 400-acre compound in Pennsylvania," Erdogan said, as quoted by the Daily Sabah newspaper.

The coup attempt was suppressed by early Saturday, with Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim stating that all coup supporters were identified and would be apprehended as the country was returning to normal life. Over 180 people were killed and 1,470 were injured during the events, while nearly 3,000 people have already been detained, according to the prime minister.

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