Is PM looking for someone he can pass the blame to?

Ali Ünal

I saw on some websites that Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke about me using the following words: "Some immoral person has dared to describe this as a divine calamity, and he lacks any honor, humanity and dignity to argue that the miners and the nation deserved it.

Gülen makes application to top court over slanderous report

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has made an individual application to the Constitutional Court for the removal of a slanderous report from a news portal on the grounds that the report violates his personal rights.

Four criticisms directed to the Gülen movement

James Harrington

The Gülen movement has been vetted often—as the subject of numerous books, conferences, learned journals, periodicals, and academic studies. Most reviews are characteristically descriptive and favorable. Some are not, of course; and some are neutral.

Auto companies from 27 countries join TUSKON summit

Representatives of automotive manufacturing companies from 27 countries were in the city of Konya on Tuesday to participate in a trade and investment summit organized by the Turkish Confederation of Businessmen and Industrialists (TUSKON).

Wiretapped recordings erased on orders of new police chief

Despite claims that recordings of conversations wiretapped in a Diyarbakır investigation had been erased by members of the “parallel structure,” in the course of another investigation it has come out that the recordings were actually erased on the orders of a police chief who was recently appointed to the province.

How strong is the Gülen movement in France?

Ariane Bonzon*

The confrontation between Islamists, led by the Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan against the Gülen movement has repercussions in France where this little known organization counts several thousands of followers.

Erdogan and Gulen: Inevitable Clash?

Noha Khaled*

It would not be an exaggeration if we stated that Turkey’s Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) reign in power is the most important political experiment in the post-Ottoman Muslim World. As well, the Turkish reformist “Hizmet” movement, with its successes and expansion locally and globally, can be said to be one of the most important civic movements in contemporary Muslim history.

Smear campaign websites cleared while targeted journalists accused

In a development that is likely to go down in history as an example of a judicial scandal, an investigation has been launched into some well-known journalists who had taken legal action against certain smear campaigning websites that have been employing highly offensive, libelous and accusatory language targeting the journalists due to their criticisms of the government, according to some media reports.

Mining disaster victims commemorated by Senegalese students

Mining disaster victims, who lost their lives in Turkey’s deadliest mine explosion which took place in southwestern Turkish city of Manisa’s Soma district, commemorated in Senegal. Flags have been lowered to half-mast at the Yavuz Selim Eğitim Kurumları (Yavuz Selim Colleges), operating in the fields of education in Western African country of Senegal, also one of the prestigious tuition foundations in the country.

Understanding of Muslims in US is limited, says scholar

Jihad Turk, the founding president of the first Islamic graduate school in the United States, Bayan College, a division of Claremont Lincoln University, admits that there is a negative image of Islam in the United States, thanks mainly to the media, but adds that it is not entrenched and changes once people get to know Muslims on a personal basis because Americans admit to knowing very little about Islam.

Starting a witch hunt

Orhan Oğuz Gürbüz

The discourse Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Chairman and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan relies on to intimidate his opponents has taken on a whole different dimension. The prime minister argues that his election victory in the March 30 local elections gives him the right to combat the Hizmet movement, which he refers to as the “parallel state” or “parallel structure.”

Evolution of the Gülen Movement

Helen Rose Ebaugh

Scholars who study social movements agree that the elements of a movement must “incubate” for a while before it emerges into the public as a recognizable social movement. Because of his preaching and recorded messages, the ideas and inspiration of Mr. Gülen were becoming well known in Turkey by the early 1980s. Increasing numbers of people were joining the Gülen-inspired sohbets, the local circles of people who met regularly to discuss his ideas, to initiate the dormitories and preparatory classes he suggested, to finance these and other service projects and to establish a network of informal community relationships among like-minded citizens. These networks of individuals, including businessmen with the financial resources to support the service projects, had begun to form slowly in villages and cities where Mr. Gülen preached.

Associations, NGOs, banks launch aid campaigns for Soma victims

Many business associations, private banks, NGOs and football clubs have launched aid campaigns for families of the victims of the coal mining incident in Soma, where an explosion and fire killed at least 283 mineworkers.

Turkey and the problem of political continuity

Anthony Skinner

Even before the disaster of Tuesday’s explosion at a mine in western Turkey, questions were being raised about the future of prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It is yet another example of the volatility that seems to be perpetual in the country.

Hate discourse directed against Hizmet movement

Diren Çakmak*

Amid fresh discussions on whether the 1915 incidents constitute a crime of genocide, I invite all to reread an article by Lawyer Orhan Erdemli recently published in Today's Zaman, “Is Hizmet being subjected to genocide?”

Review of Walter Wagner’s Beginnings and Endings: Fethullah Gulen’s Vision for Today’s World

“What we call the beginning is often the end.

And to make an end is to make a beginning.

The end is where we start from.”

Thomas Stearns Eliot
“The Four Quartets”

Academics: Hizmet a movement, not a gang; Gülen builds ties

The Hizmet movement led by US-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen is not a gang but a movement, academics have said in reaction to a smear campaign led by the Turkish government against the movement and its representatives.

Gülen extends condolences to coal mine victims

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has extended condolences for victims of the coal mine blast in western Turkish town of Soma, wishing speedy recovery for injured workers.

Hizmet keeps school and cultural center in São Paulo

Luisa Pessoa

Founded eight years ago, the Colégio Belo Futuro Internacional [Belo Futuro International School] teaches elementary to high school and has 163 students, of which only seven were born in Turkey.

Deputy: Prime minister accuses others of the things he does

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is accusing other segments of society of undermining the state, but in fact he is the one who is distorting the state system, according to Burdur independent deputy Hasan Hami Yıldırım.

Erdoğan officially declares his despotism

Bülent Keneş

In a democracy, an administration owes its legitimacy not only to popular will, but also to the laws by which it is bound. In this way, it is the law that distinguishes a state from a gang, mafia, tribal administration or crime syndicate and makes it a legitimate administrative organization.

Turkish opposition leader: No witch hunt in democracies

Leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has criticized Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for his threatening remarks against the Hizmet movement, which the prime minister claims, without providing any evidence, is involved in a plot against the government.

MHP leader calls PM Erdoğan's witch hunt remark ‘unpleasant'

Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli has criticized Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for saying the government would not hesitate to conduct a witch hunt against the Hizmet movement, describing the prime minister's remark as “ very unpleasant.”

Extraditing Gulen and other dark conspiracies

İhsan Yılmaz*

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's actions for the last two years suggest that he is taking a "Hobbesian-Machiavellian" approach to achieve his desired aims. He routinely comes up with baseless accusations against other people, groups and countries - for instance, his ceaseless demonising of both the West and Fethullah Gulen, a political rival whom he portrays as a puppet of the West.

Reaction mounts against PM's witch-hunt remarks

Politicians, members of the judiciary and journalists have spoken out against threatening remarks by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who stated that the government will carry out a witch hunt against followers of a faith-based group.

Witch hunt spreads to courthouse

The government's systematic purge of members of the police force after the corruption scandal that became public on Dec. 17, 2013 has now spread to other state institutions, as 200 administrative personnel at the Ankara Courthouse have been reassigned on the grounds that they are members of the "parallel structure."

'Humiliating people not allowed in Islam'

While responding to a question on hate speech, the Religious Affairs Directorate said on Monday that Islam does not allow its followers to use such discourse.

Mothers meet in İstanbul to mark Mother's Day, see their children

One hundred eighty mothers from 63 countries whose children study in Turkey met for an event in İstanbul on Friday to mark Mother's Day.

Turkey's first private Arabic station starts to broadcast

Turkey's first private Arabic TV channel, Hira TV began to broadcast over the Internet this week and plans to broadcast via satellite in the coming months.

Fethullah Gülen's message to the International symposium "Ijtihad and Qiyas: The richness of Islam"

Fethullah Gülen

Most respected scholars, intellectuals, and community leaders, who honored this symposium from Turkey and abroad; and distinguished guests and fortunate participants to this auspicious gathering:

Int'l scholars discuss ijtihad, qiyas at İstanbul symposium

Around 1,000 theologians, academics and opinion leaders from more than 100 countries gathered for a two-day symposium in İstanbul over the weekend to discuss the importance of ijtihad and qiyas in Islam.

Why do the AKP media always lie?

Emre Uslu

Since a serious graft scandal got underway on Dec. 17, the pro-Justice and Development Party (AKP) media have been publishing endless lies on a daily basis.

If McCarthyism rises from the grave

Ekrem Dumanlı

Joseph McCarthy managed to set the agenda by waving a black list in his hand. It was this way that he put fear into people's hearts. "Here's the list of traitors and spies!" he would say. He voiced an exact number as well: 205 people. Yet, all of the "evidential documents" waved by the Wisconsin senator were forged or irrelevant, including such impertinent documents as a dry cleaning bill. Still, they served him well as he managed to expose the American people to discrimination and hate speech for a decade. He believed to have dozens of documents in a mysterious bag he always carried with him. McCarthy was assumed to be speaking with the "solemnity of a statesman." After he died, people curiously looked into his bag and saw that it was empty. His accusations were imaginary and consisted solely of black propaganda aimed to scare the public.

Erdoğan says his gov't will carry out ‘witch hunt'

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, while defending an ongoing government-sponsored wave of purges of public officials, said on Sunday that the government will carry out a “witch hunt” if that is how critics define the purges.

Toward a security state

Mustafa Erdoğan*

The Justice and Development Party (AKP) government has taken a huge step toward making the state stronger by adopting a bill that restructured the national intelligence agency.

Young environmentalists awarded at 22nd INEPO

Young environmentalists from different corners of the world who attended the 22nd International Environmental Project Olympiad (INEPO) to find solutions to environmental problems and thus make the world a better place to live have been awarded gold, silver and bronze medals.

Samanyolu high school wins gold medal in TÜBİTAK contest

Ankara's private Samanyolu Science High School picked up a gold medal on Monday in the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey's (TÜBİTAK) 45th Research Projects contest.

Pro-gov't firms label rivals in tenders part of ‘parallel state'

Certain business owners close to the government are now targeting their public tender rivals by labeling them as being part of a "parallel state” -- a veiled reference by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to the Hizmet movement -- Turkish media reported on Sunday.

Turkish PM signals to intensify state purge ahead of expected presidential bid

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, expected to run for president in August, has signaled that he will intensify a purge of state institutions to curb the influence of an Islamic cleric he accuses of trying to topple him.

Ex-employee files complaint against TİB head over purge

A former expert at the Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) who was recently removed from his job as part of a government-sponsored wave of purges at public institutions has filed a criminal complaint against TİB President Cemalettin Çelik and two department heads at the directorate.

Gülen says praying for kidnapped schoolgirls, Nigerian people

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen has said he is praying for the recently kidnapped schoolgirls, their families and the Nigerian people, calling on the kidnappers to immediately free the girls.

Smear campaign against Gülen today harsher than in Feb. 28 era

Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, who has inspired a worldwide religious network that defends peaceful coexistence through dialogue and education, is currently being targeted in a government-sponsored smear campaign that is reminiscent of, and even harsher than, the Feb. 28, 1997 coup period.

Former football star, İstanbul deputy says he is subject to hate crime

The famous former football player Hakan Şükür, who was awarded a distinguished service medal from the state due to his impressive sporting career, is also renowned in the international football world for scoring one of the highest numbers of goals in one season.

Islamic scholars convene at ijtihad symposium in İstanbul

Around 100 Islamic scholars from many parts of the world gathered at İstanbul Congress Center at ijtihad conference organized by Yeni Ümit and Hira Magazines.

Afghan Turk schools gained great success at university exam

Students from Afghan Turk schools scored a victory at university entrance examination in the country and 30 students were able to be ranked on top 100 at the exam, a success which was observed in the previous years as well.

Science, Culture and Art activity held at Fatih College

Near the end of 2013-2014 academic year, Fatih College held a large scale activity with the participation of 25,000 students from 106 colleges.

Turkey is gateway to Europe: exporters urged to collaborate with Turkish companies

Ultimate objective of Pak-Turk Businessmen Association (PTBA) is to give a quantum jump to the trade between the two brotherly countries and in this connection members of the association are regularly interacting with various chambers of commerce and industry in Pakistan, said Nida Yilmaz, Secretary General, PTBA.

Deviation, crisis and opportunities…

Begüm Burak

The recent crisis going on between the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and the Hizmet movement is indeed not just a struggle between the two actors. It means much more than that. This fight represents a struggle between democracy and autocracy, freedom and oppression and a harmonious society and a polarized society.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan: Turkey’s President-in-Waiting?

Marc Pierini*

As I write, the probability of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan running for president of the Republic of Turkey in an election on August 10 seems to get higher by the day. For a long time, most Western observers of Turkish politics thought either that the current situation would continue—with Abdullah Gül as president and Mr. Erdoğan as prime minister—or that the two men would swap jobs.

Government's excessive and disproportionate use of power

Lale Kemal

Turkey has become less transparent and there is less freedom of speech -- even none, you might say -- compared with, for instance, just three years ago.

Renewed attempt to target firm close to Hizmet exposed

A prosecutor's office in İstanbul is preparing to launch a new investigation into Kaynak Holding, a Turkish company close to the Hizmet movement, in an alleged attempt to reignite earlier claims of irregularities in the company, Today's Zaman learned on Friday.

Mysterious visitors to holdings

Turhan Bozkurt

Reports of certain visitors paying “unexpected” visits to various Turkish holdings and company headquarters are currently being spread in economy circles.

Swoboda calls on gov't to show solid evidence of ‘parallel state'

The Turkish government's campaign against what it calls the “parallel state” through mass purges and demotions in the police and judiciary, and its accusations that the Hizmet movement has infiltrated the state and attempted a coup d'état, requires proof, Hannes Swoboda, the president of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats of the European Parliament, has said.

‘My son in law is a Gülenist but my daughter is a Muslim’

Murat Yetkin

I had never heard any sentence like the one in the title before. I interrupted the person speaking and asked, “What do you mean? Do you mean that you don’t consider your son-in-law to be a Muslim because he is a Gülenist?”

GYV: Hard-won democratic gains sacrificed for short-term interests (2)

Concerned over Turkey's faltering democracy amid simmering fears over the country's lurch toward authoritarianism, the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) said democratic gains, achieved after painstaking efforts over the course of the past decade, are being sacrificed for short-term political interests at the expense of democracy.