Gülen warns Hizmet movement against possible plots

Renowned Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has warned members of Hizmet, a social movement which is known for its cultural and educational activities across the world, against possible plots aiming to portray the movement as a criminal network by placing some illegal materials at houses and institutions affiliated with the movement.

As Turkey is going through a turbulent time regarding reverberations of the protracted conflict consuming Syria and other related problems in Turkish domestic and foreign policy, Gülen warned against some plans that aim to cause entrenched problems in Turkey's socio-political landscape by creating deep polarization among social and political actors.

"For instance, some people could place weapons or drugs at houses and institutions [affiliated with Hizmet] to pave way for legal probes and an enduring smear campaign against the movement," Gülen said, in an implicit reference to efforts of clandestine organizations targeting Hizmet (Gülen) movement.

Gülen movement faced tremendous pressure during the Feb. 28 coup period when the military-led National Security Council (MGK) forced the democratically elected civilian government to step down on Feb. 28, in 1997.

Published on Today's Zaman, 05 September 2013, Thursday