US-based cleric Gulen slams Turkey judicial system over arrest warrant

US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen has condemned Turkey’s judicial system after a court issued an arrest warrant that accuses him of ordering last month’s bid to topple President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“It is well-documented that the Turkish court system is without judicial independence, so this warrant is yet another example of President Erdogan’s drive for authoritarianism and away from democracy,” he said in a statement late on Thursday.

The arrest warrant, issued earlier in the day, accuses Gulen of “ordering the July 15 coup,” the Anadolu news agency reported.

Gulen strongly denies any involvement in the attempted putsch and the movement he leads insists it is a charitable network promoting tolerant Islam.

“The issuance of an arrest warrant from a Turkish court changes nothing about my status or my views,” Gulen said.

“I have repeatedly condemned the coup attempt in Turkey and denied any knowledge or involvement.”