Egypt has an exceptional place in the Islamic world. This geography, which has been the cradle of civilizations in history, has also raised important… - Fethullah Gülen

The core tenets of a functioning democracy — the rule of law, respect for individual freedoms — are also the most basic of Islamic values bestowed upon us by God. No political or religious leader has the authority to take them away. It is disheartening to see religious scholars provide theological justification for the ruling party’s oppression and corruption or simply stay silent. Those who use the language and symbols of religious observance but violate the core principles of their religion do not deserve such loyalty from religious scholars.

Yes, it reduced the country from a country with zero enemies to a country with zero friends. Because by interfering in the internal affairs of surrounding countries, he tried to design those countries through armed radical groups that he supported in various ways. He saw this right in himself, establishing himself as the leader of the Middle East and the caliph of the Islamic world. We did not approve of any of these. That's why he declared us enemies. From now on, he tried to achieve his political goals by blaming every negative event on the Service. For example, using the December 2013 corruption investigation as an excuse, he politicized the entire judiciary and thus rendered the judiciary ineffective. By disbanding the experienced police personnel that the country had trained for years, it rendered the police force inoperable. He ensured the transfer of major media groups to his supporters and prevented others from voicing the truth by silencing them, sometimes with advertising support and tenders, and sometimes with threats. Under the pretext of the July 15 incident, he inflicted the greatest historical damage on the Armed Forces and took them under his tutelage. In short, Erdogan turned state institutions into instruments of his political ambitions and polarized the public in an unprecedented way.

The latest victims of the clampdown are the staff, executives and editors of independent media organizations who were detained and are now facing charges made possible by recent changes to the laws and the court system. The director of one of the most popular TV channels, arrested in December, is still behind bars. Public officials investigating corruption charges have also been purged and jailed for simply doing their jobs. An independent judiciary, a functioning civil society and media are checks and balances against government transgressions. Such harassment sends the message that whoever stands in the way of the ruling party’s agenda will be targeted by slander, sanctions and even trumped-up charges.