The Turkish government is requesting the extradition of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gülen over his alleged links to Friday’s attempted coup, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Tuesday.
“We have sent four dossiers to the United States for the extradition of the terrorist chief. We will present them with more evidence than they want,” Yildirim told parliament, AFP reports.
The Turkish government claims Gülen, a preacher and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s onetime political ally, was behind the failed coup.
Gülen has denied he was involved in the attempt to overthrow the Turkish president on Friday, when a group from Turkey’s army declared it was taking control of the country.
The cleric has suggested instead that the failed coup, which left at least 265 people dead, was staged by Erdoğan to justify a crackdown on dissent and further consolidation of his powers.
In the past, Turkish officials have criticized the U.S. government for harboring the 75-year-old religious leader, who lives in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania.
On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said that the U.S. will “immediately” consider any extradition request but that the Turkish government will have to provide evidence of Gülen’s involvement in the plot. “We will go through our legal process,” Kerry said in an interview on ABC’s “This Week.”
“We’re not holding back from doing anything, nor have we ever been,” he said adding: “We’ve always said, ‘look, if you have evidence of X, Y or Z, please present it to us.’ Turkey is a friend. Turkey is an ally.”
But, Kerry warned, the U.S. has “very strict standards in order to protect people’s rights.”
Separately on Tuesday, Yildirim criticized reports of vigilante justice against military personnel, according to a report by Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency.
At a joint news conference following a meeting with Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in Ankara, Yildirim said: “Nobody can resort to physical violence, and seek revenge. This is totally unacceptable in a state of law.”
The prime minister said authorities would take steps to ensure those taking the law into their own hands would be dealt with.