Turkey vows to arrest more Gulen followers abroad over coup attempt

The Turkish government has vowed to carry out new operations abroad to “pack” and bring home followers of U.S.-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom it blames for the 2016 failed military coup.
“The national intelligence service has so far packed 80 FETO members in 18 countries and brought them to Turkey,’’ Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Thursday in Ankara, using an acronym for Gulen followers.
Bozdag’s comments came days after six Turkish nationals in Kosovo were secretly arrested and delivered to Ankara.
Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj sacked his interior minister and the head of the intelligence service shortly after the incident.
“Intelligence service operations similar to that in Kosovo will continue,’’ Bozdag said, referring to the extradited men, who were teachers at schools linked to Gulen’s movement.
Ankara has been exerting diplomatic pressure on several governments to close and hand over the schools allegedly tied to Gulen and expel members, branding them as terrorists.
Report says Gulen denies all charges.
According to report, Turkey remains under a state of emergency, which was imposed after the coup attempt and has been repeatedly extended.
More than 50,000 people are under arrest in connection with the coup, and some 150,000 people have been purged from the civil service and military.
Bozdag also said that he expected the state of emergency to be extended once again.