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| Ayşe Özkalay, the newly appointed chairwoman of the Turkish charitable foundation Kimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There) |
He congratulated Özkalay in his announcement on Twitter on Friday: “Already ready for the position through her [previous post as] vice president; good luck to my dear sister Ayşe Özkalay and the KYM family.”
On Thursday, Cingöz announced his resignation, saying he was targeted in a smear campaign on the part of the government and that he did not want to hurt the charity with the unlawful pressure that was being put on him.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office earlier this year launched an investigation into the prominent charity on charges of financing terrorism.
Kimse Yok Mu, which is affiliated with the Gülen movement, also known as the Hizmet movement and inspired by the teachings of Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, has become a target in a battle launched by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government against the movement. Several pro-government media outlets are carrying out smear campaigns with publications accusing the charity of engaging in illegal fundraising activities, despite a lack of evidence to that effect.
Published on Today's Zaman, 18 December 2015, Friday
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