Alwaght- Turkish Police arrested 100 people considered to be linked with the Fetullah Organization (FETO)/Parallel State Structure (PDY) in Istanbul and some other regions in Turkey.
The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Monday issued arrest warrants for 140 people, including Bank Asya employees, FETO/PYD executives and businessmen, as part of an investigation into around 40 million Turkish liras (nearly $14 million) provided to the banned organization between 2004 and 2015, according to Anadolu News Agency website.
The FETO/PYD group is headed by the U.S.-based preacher, Fetullah Gulen, who runs a network of schools and commercial enterprises in Turkey and around the world.
Gulen is the main suspect in the investigation of mass wiretapping of Dec. 17 and 21, 2013, which targeted more than 7,000 people.
Since early 2014, investigations into the parallel state have seen hundreds of civil servants, including police and public prosecutors, arrested or reassigned.
Gulen has repeatedly been accused of attempting to form a “parallel state.” He was tried and found guilty in 2000, before being acquitted of all charges in 2008.
Before relocating to the US in 1998, the popular cleric was one of Erdogan’s top allies. Their relationship began to deteriorate, as Erdogan grew paranoid about Gulen’s growing influence, facilitated by schools, education centers, and charity organizations in over 160 countries.
Critics have accused Erdogan of building an authoritarian regime and bending the constitution to concentrate an increasing amount of power in the presidency.
