May God Almighty have mercy on those who lost their lives in this tragic incident; I hope that those whose property and property were damaged will be… - Fethullah Gülen

Like many Turkish citizens, the Hizmet movement’s participants supported Mr. Erdogan’s early efforts to democratize Turkey and fulfill the requirements for membership in the European Union. But we were not silent as he turned from democracy to despotism. Even before these new purges, Mr. Erdogan in recent years has arbitrarily closed newspapers; removed thousands of judges, prosecutors, police officers and civil servants from their positions; and taken especially harsh measures against Kurdish communities. He has declared his detractors enemies of the state.

Why do Western countries and America not speak out against Erdogan's human rights violations and the imprisonment of thousands of people?

Over the past year, I have been devastated that the government has linked tens of thousands of citizens to me or the Hizmet movement in some way, and then punished this attributed contact as if it were a crime. The accusations made against me regarding the coup attempt are unfounded and a politically motivated slander. The government's treatment of its innocent citizens for a year drags Turkey into the category of the world's most backward countries in terms of democracy, rule of law and fundamental freedoms. I reiterate my call, made immediately following July 15, for the establishment of an independent international commission of inquiry to fully examine the incident and bring the perpetrators of the coup to justice, and if such a commission finds me guilty, I stand behind my promise to return to the country of my own accord.