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160 active military personnel detained in Turkey over links to Gulen ‘terrorist organization’ behind 2016 botched coup
19 Jan 2021 10:57
at the 4th Heavy Penal Court near Ankara. © AFP
Dozens of servicemen have been detained in a large-scale operation in Turkey, local media report. The soldiers are suspected of having links to Fethullah Gulen, the exiled preacher Ankara believes was behind the 2016 coup attempt.
The large-scale operation, which swept across 60 Turkish provinces, was reported on Tuesday by the state-owned Anadolu news agency, citing security sources.
Arrest warrants for 238 people, all of whom are active members of Turkish Armed and Air Forces, as well as of its Gendarmerie General Command, had been issued by Izmir prosecutors. A number of the suspects are said to be high-ranking officers, including six colonels, three lieutenant colonels and nine majors.
Some 160 people have already been detained, after other recent police raids. At least 213 of all the suspects are believed to have had frequent phone contacts with the “private imams” of the so-called Fethullah Gulen Terrorist Organization (FETO). That entity, which is alleged to be in existence and led by Gulen, the elusive, US-based, exiled cleric and former ally –though now arch-nemesis – of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has been accused by Ankara of staging the botched 2016 coup attempt. Gulen, however, has consistently denied his involvement in the violence that left over 250 people killed and triggered the ongoing purge by Ankara of suspected FETO supporters.
Since the coup attempt, some 80,000 people have been held pending trial, while more than 150,000 public servants, military personnel and others have been sacked or suspended over alleged ties to FETO.
For the past 100 years, the military has been able to keep the government of Turkey from becoming too Islamic. Ataturk's takeover after the defeat of the Ottomans, and the Armenian genocide, brought some dignity to Turkey. Each time a radical Muslim leader would attempt to take control, the military would step in and restore secularism.
Erdogan has managed to avoid a military coup as he moves Turkey more and more toward a sultanate, by getting rid of those military officers he presumes are a danger to him. Whether they have anything to do with Gulen or not is anybody's guess right now. But, for sure, Erdogan is in control.
Erdogan has managed to avoid a military coup as he moves Turkey more and more toward a sultanate, by getting rid of those military officers he presumes are a danger to him. Whether they have anything to do with Gulen or not is anybody's guess right now. But, for sure, Erdogan is in control.
‘Islamic State-inspired’ US soldier arrested over alleged plot to bomb
American troops and attack NYC 9/11 Memorial
19 Jan 2021 20:34
FILE PHOTO © REUTERS/Bryan Woolston
An American soldier has been arrested on terrorism charges, including suggesting wiring explosives into buildings as part of an Islamic State plot to kill US troops, as well as allegedly planning an attack on the 9/11 Memorial.
Ohio man Cole James Bridges, 20, was held in Georgia on Tuesday, and is charged with the assistance of a foreign terrorist organization and the attempted murder of US military service members, the US Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
The private first class, also known as Cole Gonzales, had expressed his support for the terrorist Islamic State group on social media, according to the criminal complaint unsealed on Tuesday in Manhattan Federal Court.
After joining the US Army in late 2019, Bridges began unknowingly communicating with a member of the FBI in October last year, with the bureau employee posing as an IS supporter who claimed to be in touch with the terrorist group in the Middle East.
The soldier is then said to have used his army training to guide supposed IS fighters about potential attacks in New York City, including on the 9/11 Memorial.
In December 2020, Bridges allegedly provided diagrams of “specific military maneuvers” to help IS fighters “maximize the lethality of attacks on US troops” while also pledging his allegiance to the terrorist group in videos. He suggested militants should wire particular buildings with explosives in order to kill American troops, the charges claim.
“As alleged, Cole Bridges betrayed the oath he swore to defend the United States by attempting to provide ISIS with tactical military advice to ambush and kill his fellow service members,” said Manhattan US Attorney Audrey Strauss.
If convicted, Bridges faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of his alleged crimes. He is set to appear in a federal court in Georgia on Thursday.
France’s main Muslim organization slams three Islamic groups for not signing up to anti-extremism charter
21 Jan 2021 13:11
FILE PHOTO: French President Emmanuel Macron stands with former Paris mayor Bertrand Delanoe (R)
in the courtyard of the Zitouna mosque in the Medina (old town) in Tunis, Tunisia, February 1, 2018.
© REUTERS / Eric Feferberg / Pool
The President of the French Council of the Muslin Faith (CFCM) has criticized three Islamic groups in the country over their decision to refuse to sign up to an anti-extremism charter proposed by President Emmanuel Macron.
The Faith and Practice movement, Committee for Coordination of Turkish Muslims in France (CCMTF) and Milli Gorus Islamic Confederation (CMIG) jointly announced on Wednesday evening that they will not sign the charter that has been proposed, in the wake of Islamic terrorist attacks across Europe during 2020.
“[These groups] risk being held responsible for this situation of division,” Mohamed Moussaoui, President of the CFCM said in a statement, calling their actions “repetitive” and describing how they are unlikely to “provide reassurance” that the Muslim religion should not be feared.
The three organizations reportedly refused to sign the charter over their concern about the way that it defines foreign interference in religion and the Islamic faith.
Explaining their refusal, the groups claimed that they fear “certain passages and formulations in the text submitted are likely to weaken the bonds of trust between the Muslims of France and the nation.”
Some statements are prejudicial to the honour of Muslims, with an accusatory and marginalising tone.
Gee, I wonder where that came from?
The CFCM is comprised of nine groups but, so far, only five have agreed to sign the charter and work with the French government to address concerns in the country about radicalization and religious extremism.
So, one is unaccounted for in this article!
President Macron proposed the charter towards the end of 2020, as well as implementing a crackdown on mosques and organizations that push extremism, after a teacher was beheaded by an Islamic extremist over a lesson where he showed pupils cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed as part of a discussion on free speech.
Double suicide bombing hits Baghdad, killing at least 32 and injuring around 110 others
21 Jan 2021 09:29
A view shows the site of a suicide attack in Baghdad, Iraq January 21, 2021. © REUTERS / Thaier al-Sudani
The Iraqi government has confirmed social media reports of two suicide bombings in the country’s capital, with the explosions in central Baghdad killing at least 32 and injuring around 110 others.
Two explosions were heard in Tayaran Square, Baghdad by witnesses after suicide bombers are believed to have detonated explosive vests in the area's busy marketplace.
In response to the attack, Iraq has deployed intense security measures and closed roads around the site of the attack, establishing a green zone while they evaluate the extent of the casualties and damage caused, according to state media.
The Iraqi health ministry has confirmed 32 fatalities and 110 injuries, as the death toll from the blast continues to rise.
The country has been on high security alert since the beginning of this month over concerns of a potential attack, and local authorities have been conducting field inspections around Baghdad International Airport as part of an operation to find and disarm any unauthorized weapons. It's not clear if this incident is linked to that security threat.
So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the suicide bombings.
It is very telling toward Islamic Insanity that there are so many factions of Muslims in Iraq, and elsewhere, that they can't tell who is responsible for blowing up over 140 people.
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