TheGülen movement (Turkish:Gülen hareketi) orHizmet movement (Hizmet hareketi) is anIslamist fraternal movement. It is asub-sect ofSunni Islam based on aNursian theological perspective as reflected inFethullah Gülen's religious teachings. It is referred to by its members as the "Service" ("Hizmet") or "Community" ("Cemaat") and it originated in Turkey in 1970s.[2] It is institutionalized in 180 countries through educational institutions as well as media outlets, interfaith dialogue organisations, finance companies, for-profit health clinics, and affiliated foundations that have a combined net worth in the range of 20–50 billion dollars as of 2015.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][excessive citations]
Its teachings are considered conservative in Turkey but some have praised the movement as apacifist, modern-oriented version of Islam, and an alternative to more extreme schools of Islam such asSalafism.[10] On the other hand, it has also been reported to have a "cultish hierarchy" and as being a secretiveIslamic sect.[11][12][13] The movement is also known for initiating forums forinterfaith dialogue.
The movement was previously led by theIslamic preacher,Hoca Fethullah Gülen, who left Turkey in 1999 after being threatened by lawsuits and settled inSaylorsburg, Pennsylvania until his death in 2024.[14]
When the AKP came to power in 2002 the two groups formed a non-aggression pact against the military and theTurkish secular elite despite their differences.[citation needed]
Once the old establishment had been defeated, disagreements began emerging between the AKP and the Gülen movement. The first breaking point was the so-called ″MİT crisis″ in February 2012 which has been interpreted as a power struggle between the AKP and the pro-Gülen police and judiciary.[15][16][17] The tensions increased after Gulen criticized Erdogan's heavy handed response toGezi Park protests.[18] Aftercorruption investigations in December 2013 into several politicians and family members of the ruling AKP of Turkey by the Gülen friendly judiciary, PresidentRecep Tayyip Erdoğan claimed the movement had initiated the investigations as a result of a break in previously friendly relations.[19][20][21][22] President Erdoğan said Gülen had attempted to overthrow the Turkish government through a judicial coup using the investigations. In response to the investigations, the government seized the group-owned newspaperZaman, which was one of the most circulatednewspapers in Turkey, as well as several companies that had ties to the group totaling billions of dollars.[23][24]
Since May 2016, the Gülen movement has been classified by Turkey as aterrorist organization under the names Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (Turkish:Fethullahçı Terör Örgütü) (FETÖ) and Parallel State Structure (Turkish:Paralel Devlet Yapılanması) (PDY).[25] The movement has also been designated as a terrorist organization by a few politically aligned countries:Pakistan,Northern Cyprus, and theGulf Cooperation Council.[25][26][27] However, the Gülen movement is not recognized as a terrorist organization by theEuropean Union,[28] theUnited States,[29] theUnited Kingdom,[30]Canada,Australia andNew Zealand due to lack of credible evidence. The Gülen movement was included in the declaration in the trilateral memorandum signed by Turkey, Finland and Sweden during theNATO summit in Madrid on 28 June 2022, but it was not defined as a terrorist organization.[31]
On the evening ofJuly 15 coup attempt, Erdogan immediately blamed the Gulen movement for it.[32] The next morning he called the coup attempt a "Gift from God" andarrested thousands of soldiers and judges.[33] Other members of the group who worked for Turkey's governmental agencies were dismissed and over ten thousand education staff were suspended and the licenses of over 20,000 teachers working at private institutions were revoked due to their affiliation to Gülen.[34][35] 8 days after the coup attempt on July 23, 2016, the Turkish government shut down 1,043 private schools, 1,229 charities, 19 trade unions, 15 universities, and 35 medical institutions allegedly linked to the Gülen movement, seizing properties valued at $12 billion.[36] 3,000,000 citizens of Turkey investigated for terrorism between 2016 and 2024[37] and 511,000 arrested for alleged links to Gulen movement.[38][39] Turkey's freedom rating has decreased every year since 2016 according toFreedom House, and it has been rated as "Not Free" since 2018.[40] According to the historianMichael Rubin the coup attempt was staged to serve Erdogan's interests, "to allow a dictator to consolidate power".[41]
Gülen condemned the coup, denied involvement, and called for an international commission to investigate the failed coup, saying he’d accept its findings if found guilty.[42]
Membership
Enes Kanter Freedom openly expressed his support for the Hizmet movement
A true count of the membership is unknown since the movement is not a centralized or formal organization with membership rosters, but rather a set of numerous, loosely organized networks of people inspired by Gülen.[43] Estimates of the size of the movement vary, with one estimate byTempo in 1997 stating that between 200,000 supporters and 4 million people are influenced by Gülen's ideas,[44] and another source stating that Gülen has "hundreds of thousands of supporters".[45] The membership of the movement consists primarily of students, teachers, businessmen, academics, journalists and other professionals.[9] Some well known people who are or were affiliated with the movement include former NBA playerEnes Kanter Freedom and soccer starHakan Şükür.[46][47]
Organization
The movement states that it is based on moral values and advocacy ofuniversal access to education,civil society, tolerance and peace. The emphasis among participants is to perform "service" (which is the meaning of the Turkish word "hizmet") as arising from individuals' personal commitments to righteous imperatives. Along withhizmet, the movement, which has no official name, is termed the Gülen movement orcemaat (the latter also used to describe participants inSufi orders, meaning "congregation," "community," or "assembly.")
The movement's structure has been described as a flexible organizational network.[48]
Lay clergy (Imam-Mullah-Shaykh)
Akin to Turkey's Sufitariqas arelay religious orders which have been banned in Turkey since 1925.[49] Movement schools and businesses organize locally and link themselves into informal networks.[50] Each local Gülen movement school and community has a person designated its "informal" prayer leader (Imam). In Turkey Imam is state-sponsored. In the Gülen movement, this individual is a layman who serves for a stint within this volunteer position,lay clergy.[citation needed] His identity is kept confidential, generally only purposely made known to those with close connections to those participating in decision-making and coordinating councils within the local group. Above a grouping of such "secret" (not-publicly acknowledged) imams is another such volunteer leader.[citation needed] This relationship tree continues on up the ladder to the nation-level imam and to individuals who consult with Gülen himself.[51] These individuals closest to Gülen, having degrees from theology schools, are offhandedly referred to within the movement asmullahs.[52] Gülen's position, as described in the foregoing, is analogous to that of ashaykh (master) of a Sufi tariqa. Unlike with traditional tariqas, no-one makes pledges of any sort, upon joining the Gülen movement; one becomes a movement participant simply by working with others to promote and effect the movement's objectives of education and service.[53]
TheSüddeutsche Zeitung quoted a German lawyer that called the organization "more powerful than theIlluminati" and "not transparent as opposed to the claims", and reported that the organization tried to reorganize in theSwabia region of Germany.[54]
Associated organizations
Gülen and the Gülen movement are technology-friendly, work within current market and commerce structures, and are savvy users of modern communications and public relations.[55]
Its members have founded schools, universities, hopsitals, an employers' association, charities, real estate trusts, student organizations, radio and television stations, and newspapers.[45][56]
Hizmet-affiliated foundations and businesses were estimated to be worth 20-50 billion dollars in 2015.[7]
Gökhan Açıkkollu, a teacher from a Gülen-affiliated school died in police custody after being imprisoned and tortured for 13 days post 2016 coup attempt.[57][58]
Schools associated with the Gülen movement can be found in countries with large populations of people of Turkish descent as well as in predominantly non-Turkish Muslim countries where they provide families with an alternative tomadrasa education. The schools are open to both Turkish migrants and citizens of host countries, and they avoid pushing for a religious agenda. Many alumni of Gülen schools pursue elite careers in diplomacy and international institutions.[59] There were about 1000 Gülen schools in Turkey that an estimated 1.2 million Turks passed through (Including many of Erdoğan's relatives).[60] However, after the attempted coup in 2016, all of the schools were shut down and banned by law.
In 2009, it was estimated that Gülen linked schools around the world enrolled more than 2 million students.[61] Estimates of the number of schools and educational institutions but it appears there were about 300 Gülen Movement schools in Turkey and over 1,000 schools worldwide at that time.[62][63] Later reporting by theWall Street Journal estimated around 150 schools just in the United States, "ranging from networks in Texas, Illinois and Florida to stand-alone academies in Maryland".[64] Although there is no formal networking of all the schools, collectively they form one of the largest collections ofcharter schools in America."[65]
Most Gülen movement associated schools are private schools or charter schools. The curricula of the schools vary from country to country but they generally follow a secular mixture ofTurkish and local curricula with an emphasis on science and math. A 2008 article in theNew York Times said that in Pakistan "they encourage Islam in their dormitories, where teachers set examples in lifestyle and prayer", and described the Turkish schools as offering a gentler approach to Islam that could help reduce the influence of extremism.[67] However, in America, "there is no indication the American charter network has a religious agenda in the classroom", according toThe Philadelphia Inquirer.[68] Two American professors at theLutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia andTemple University wrote that "these schools have consistently promoted good learning and citizenship, and the Hizmet movement is to date an evidently admirable civil society organization to build bridges between religious communities and to provide direct service on behalf of the common good".[69] Professor Joshua Hendrick ofLoyola University Maryland, who studies the movement, said that Gülen himself "does not have a direct hand in operating" the charter schools and it was reported that Gülen has never visited the schools.[64][70] Alp Aslandoğan, director of theAlliance for Shared Values said that the schools are independent yet indirectly tied to the Gülen movement on the "intellectual or inspirational level."[71]
In Europe there has been some pushback to the establishment of schools associated with the movement. In Georgia, theGeorgian Labour Party protested schools opening on the basis that they "aim to spread Turkish culture and fundamentalist religious ideas".[72] In the Netherlands, there were concerns that the schools would promote "anti-integrative behavior" however an investigation in 2010 by theAIVD intelligence organization found that the schools did not represent a threat.[73][74]
In America there have been allegations and investigations into money-laundering and kickbacks at charter schools connected to the Gülen movement which receive federalfinancial support.[71][68] Schools in Texas were accused of sending school funds to Gülen associated organizations by prioritizing construction contracts with Turkish expatriate-owned construction companies over more economical bids, according to reporting byThe New York Times in 2011.[65]Folwell Dunbar, an official at theLouisiana Department of Education, accusedInci Akpinar, vice president of one such construction company, of offering him a $25,000 bribe to keep quiet about troubling conditions at theAbramson Science and Technology School inNew Orleans which was operated by thePelican Foundation.[75]
As of 2015 there were over 100 K-12 schools in Africa, including schools in Morocco, Mali, Chad, Niger, Nigeria, Mauritania, Senegal, Cameroon, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Congo, Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Egypt, and Angola.[76]
Media organizations
Zaman newspaper headquarters, one of the most widely circulated newspapers in Turkey before it was seized by the Turkish government.
The movement runs charity and humanitarian aid organizations internationally. Among them is the Istanbul-based Kimse Yok Mu Association (KYM). KYM organizes charity campaigns to help those in need in different parts of the world. Like any other activities of the Gülen-movement, KYM runs local projects responding to specific needs. KYM holds UN Ecosoc Special status.
Another charity organization Embrace Relief was established inNew Jersey and is active in America, Asia and Africa.[79]
Faith, practice, and experience
The movement has been characterized as a "moderate blend of Islam".[67][80] A 2008 article inThe Economist stated that the Gülen movement is vying to be recognized as the world's leading Muslim network, one that is more reasonable than many of its rivals.[81] The movement builds on the activities of Gülen, who has won praise from non-Muslims for his advocacy of science,interfaith dialogue, and multi-party democracy. It has earned praise as "the world's most global movement".[82] Fethullah Gülen's and the Gülen movement's views and practices have been discussed in several international conferences at academic level includingCalifornia State University in US,University of Toronto in Canada,O. P. Jindal Global University in India.[83][84][85][86][87]
The movement's avowal of interfaith dialogue grew out of Gülen's personal engagement in interfaith dialogue which was largely inspired by,Said Nursi. Gülen has met with leaders of other religions, includingPope John Paul II, theEcumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, and Israeli Sephardic Head RabbiEliyahu Bakshi-Doron.[88] Gülen advocates for cooperation between followers of different religions as well as those practicing different forms of Islam (such as Sunnism orAlevism).
Gülen movement participants have founded a number of institutions across the World that promoteinterfaith andintercultural dialogue activities. Among these are theJournalists and Writers Foundation in Istanbul, theRumi Forum in Washington and theIndialogue Foundation in New Delhi.
Devotional practices
David Tittensor wrote, "[Detractors] have labeled Gülen community members as secretive missionaries, while those in the Movement and sympathetic observers class it as acivil society organization".[89]
Critics have complained that members of the Gülen movement are overly compliant with the directions from its leaders,[90] and Gülen's "movement is generally perceived by its critics as a religio-politicalcult".[91] TheGuardian editorial board described the movement in 2013 as having "some of the characteristics of a cult or of an IslamicOpus Dei".[92]
Scholars such as Simon Robinson disagree with the characterization, writing that although "[t]here is no doubt that Gülen remains acharismatic leader and that members of the movement hold him in the highest respect", the movement "differs markedly from a cult in several ways", with Gülen stressing "the primacy of the scriptures" and "the imperative of service" and consistently avoiding "attempts to institutionalize power, to perceive him as the source of all truth, or to view him as taking responsibility for the movement".[93] Zeki Saritoprak says that the view of Gülen as "a cult leader or a man with ambitions" is mistaken, and contends that Gülen should be viewed in the context of a long line of Sufi masters who have long been a center of attention "for their admirers and followers, both historically and currently".[94]
Relations to the state
Gulen movement received strong support from some of the Turkish politicians like conservativeTurgut Özal,[95] and leftistBülent Ecevit[43] but not from Political Islamists.[96] Turgut Ozal visited Gulen schools in Central Asian countries and endorsed them, 3 days later he was assasinated.[59][97]
The Gülen movement works within the given structures of modern secular states; it encourages affiliated members to maximize the opportunities those countries afford rather than engaging in subversive activities.[98] In the words of the leader himself and the title of a cornerstone of his philosophy, Gülen promotes "anOttoman Empire of the Mind".[99]
Beginning in 2008, the Dutch government investigated the movement's activities in the Netherlands in response to questions fromParliament. The first two investigations, performed by theAIVD, concluded that the movement did not form a breeding ground for radicalism and found no indications that the movement worked against integration or that it was involved in terrorism or religious radicalization. A further academic study sketched a portrait of a socially conservative, inwardly directed movement with an opaque organizational structure, but said that its members tend to be highly successful in society and thus form no threat to integration.[100]
Relations to politics
Neither Gülen nor his followers have formed a national political party, but they have had political involvement or parliamentary representation for a brief time. Two supporters of the movementHakan Şükür, Muhammed Cetin served as AKP MP's between 2011-2013.[101][102] In 2008, Gülen was described as "the modern face of the Sufi Ottoman tradition", reassuring his followers, including many members of "Turkey's aspirational middle class", that "they can combine thestatist-nationalist beliefs ofAtatürk's republic with a traditional but flexible Islamic faith" and "Ottoman traditions [have] been caricatured as theocratic by Atatürk and his 'Kemalist' heirs".[55] In the early 2000s, the Gülen movement was seen as keeping a distance from established Islamic political parties.[103]
According to academic researcher and foreign lobbyist Svante E. Cornell, director of theCentral Asia-Caucasus Institute & Silk Road Studies Program, "With only slight exaggeration, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) as well as the government it has led could be termed a coalition of religious orders."[104]
"[...T]he Gülen movement stayed away from electoral politics, focusing instead on increasing its presence in the state bureaucracy. The Hizmet movement's stated success in this regard would initially make it Erdoğan's main partner, but also his eventual nemesis."[105]
Scandals and Incidents
Bombing of Şemdinli Bookstore, 2005
On 9 November 2005, abookstore was bombed in Şemdinli. The prosecutor for the case, Ferhat Sarıkaya, prepared a criminal indictment in which Turkey's Commander of Land Forces,Yaşar Büyükanıt, was accused of forming a gang and plotting the bombing. In 2016 Sarıkaya confessed that he was ordered by Gülenists to include General Yaşar Büyükanıt in the criminal indictment to prevent his promotion in the army and to ease the pressure on Gülenist structures within the army.[106] The defendants, Ali Kaya, Özcan İldeniz, and Veysel Ateş, were acquitted of the bombing on 20 December 2021.[107]
Allegations have been made about the role of the Gülen movement in the assassination of journalistHrant Dink in Istanbul. Hakan Bakırcıoglu, one of Hrant Dink's lawyers, said in an interview withDeutsche Welle that the under-aged perpetrator, Ogün Samast, had help from third parties, including people connected to the Istanbul and Trabzon police forces.[108]
Four prosecutors in the trial were dismissed from their posts due to their ties with the movement and for failing to make progress with the case. Furthermore, police commissioners Ramazan Akyürek and Ali Fuat Yılmazer were accused of not sharing their foreknowledge of the attack with the prosecutors, thegendarmerie, or the intelligence services despite being briefed of a planned assassination several times.[citation needed]
In 2023, the Dink family stated that the real perpetrator is the deep-state: "If this case is closed in its current state, and the deep-state mechanism of many years is simply labeled as 'FETÖ’ — the Turkish government’s designation for the alleged terrorist Gülen movement — and passed over, without an effective investigation being conducted, who will be responsible for the other lives that may be lost in the coming years"[109]
Questions have arisen about the Gülen movement's possible involvement in theErgenekon investigation,[110] which critics characterized as "a pretext" by the government "to neutralize dissidents" in Turkey.[61]
Journalist Nedim Şener was arrested for being a member of the Ergenekon organization and was held in pre-trial detention in 2011.[111]
The Gülen movement has also been implicated in what the oppositionRepublican People's Party (CHP) has said were illegal court decisions against members of theTurkish military, including many during the Ergenekon investigation. These claims were also supported by PresidentRecep Tayyip Erdoğan after 2013.[112]
Sex and corruption tapes, 2010
Members of the Gülen movement inside the intelligence agency have been accused of reshaping Turkish politics to a more "workable form" by leaking secretly filmed sex tapes and corruption tapes of members of the government, with the resignation of main opposition leaderDeniz Baykal in 2010 as the most notable example.[113][114][115] Deniz Baykal stated that he did not share the view of pro-government media outlets that blamed the Gülen movement for the release of the video recording, arguing that such an operation could not have been carried out without the knowledge and approval of senior government figures. In two separate interviews given in 2010 and 2016, Baykal expressed his perspective by saying, “In this context, to assist those seeking to identify other responsible parties, I would like to note that I believe in the sincerity of the messages of sympathy and support I received from the United States and Pennsylvania(Gülen movement)."[116]
The Imam's Army, 2011
In March 2011, seven Turkish journalists were arrested, includingAhmet Şık, who had been writing a book, "Imamin Ordusu" (The Imam's Army),[117] which states that the Gülen movement has infiltrated the country's security forces. As Şık was taken into police custody, he shouted, "Whoever touches it [the movement] gets burned!".[118] Upon his arrest, drafts of the book were confiscated and its possession was banned. Şık has also been charged with being part of the Ergenekon plot despite investigating the plot before his arrest.[119]
In a reply, Abdullah Bozkurt, from the Gülen aligned newspaperToday's Zaman, said Ahmet Şık was not an investigative journalist conducting "independent research", but was hatching "a plot designed and put into action by the terrorist network itself".[120]
On 17 December 2013, aninvestigation into corrupt practices by several bureaucrats, ministers, mayors, and family members of the rulingJustice and Development Party (AKP) of Turkey was uncovered, resulting in widespread protests and the resignation of four ministers of the government led by Prime MinisterErdoğan.[19][20] Due to the high level of political influence of the Gülen movement in Turkey, it was rumored that the investigation was facilitated by the movement's influence in the Turkish police force and the judiciary.[21] The investigation was said to be a result of a break in the previously friendly relations between the Islamist-rooted government and the movement.[22]
PresidentErdoğan and theAKP (the ruling party of Turkey) have targeted the movement since December 2013. Immediately after the investigation became public, the government subjugated the judiciary, media and civil society which were critical of the government's authoritarian trend in recent years.[121][122][123] Erdoğan labelled the investigations as a "civilian coup" against his government. Since then, Erdoğan has shuffled, dismissed or jailed hundreds of police officers, judges, prosecutors and journalists in the name of fighting against a "Parallel State" within the Turkish state.
Media arrests, 2014
On 14 December 2014, Turkish police arrested more than two dozen senior journalists and media executives connected with the Gülen movement on various charges.
TheUS State Department cautioned Turkey to not violate its "own democratic foundations" while drawing attention to the raids against media outlets "openly critical of the current Turkish government".[124][125]EU Foreign Affairs chiefFederica Mogherini andEU Enlargement CommissionerJohannes Hahn said that the arrests went "against European values" and "are incompatible with the freedom of media, which is a core principle of democracy".[126]
The Turkish government seized the Gülen affiliatedZaman andToday's Zaman, on 4 March 2016. Turkish police entered the headquarters by force and fired tear gas at protesting journalists and civilians. Hundreds of protestors were injured.[127][128] In their effort to eradicate the movement from within the country theTurkish National Security Council has identified the movement as the "Gülenist Terror Organisation" ("Fethullahçı Terör Örgütü", FETÖ).[129] The government has also been targeting individuals and businessmen who have supported the movement's organizations and activities.
Eavesdropping on state offices, 2015
On 20 January 2015, Turkish police launched raids inAnkara and three other cities, detaining some 20 people suspected of illegally eavesdropping on President Erdoğan and other senior officials. The suspects are linked to Turkey's telecommunications authority and to its scientific and technological research centerTUBITAK. Local media said the move was aimed at the "parallel structure" — the term Erdoğan uses to refer to Gülen's supporters in the judiciary, police and other institutions.[130]
In reaction to the15 July 2016 coup attempt which was led by a military faction operating outside the chain of command, the Turkish government quickly stated the coup's leader to be Gülen. In following days and weeks, a massive crackdown affected all entities affiliated with the Gülen movements, from individuals to businesses, newspapers and schools.[132]
Between the 2016 coup attempt and July 2024, Turkish authorities investigated more than 705,172 Turkish citizens related to alleged "FETO" terrorism according to the government's own official statement,[133] however non-governmental sources estimate this number much higher.[134] In November 2021DEVA Party MP Yeneroglu criticized that 1,576,000 people were investigated for alleged terrorism links between 2016 and 2020.[134]Eren Keskin the president ofHuman Rights Association stated that, she never seen such restrictions on freedom of speech in the 30 years of her career.[134] The government also detained over 390,000 citizens,[135] purged over 300,000 government officials[136][137] and closed more than 1,500 nongovernmental organizations, primarily for alleged ties to the Gülen movement.[138]
In 2018, approximately 25,000 Turkishasylum requests were filed by alleged Gülenists in the European Union (a rise of 50% from 2017), with Germany's share 10,000 and Greece's about 5,000.[139] In the U.S., according to news reports, a number of Gülenists who have successfully receiving political asylum status resettled in New Jersey.[140]
In 2019, it was reported thatInterpol had denied Turkey's appeals of the rejection of Turkey'sred notice requests regarding 464 fugitives. The decision cited Interpol's definition of the 2016 coup d'état attempt as a failed militaryputsch rather than an act of terrorism.[141]Finland andSweden, which applied forNATO membership in response toRussia's invasion of Ukraine in May 2022, rejected Turkey's applications for the extradition of many Gülen movement andPKK members.[142]
Attempts to extradite Gulen
Despite Turkey's official request, the United States never extradited Gülen.[143][144]
Extradition of the leadership
As of 2020[update], Turkey had successfully pressured a number of countries, especially those in Africa and theformer Soviet Union, to extradite over 80 alleged Gülenists to Turkey.[145][146] On the contrary democratic countries like USA, UK, Germany, Sweden rejected Turkey's requests to extradite the movement members.[147][148]Amnesty International criticized extraditions from Moldova in 2018.[149]
In June 2021, the Turkish-Kyrgyz educator and head of the Sapat educational network in Kyrgyzstan, Orhan Inandi, went missing fromBishkek, leading to mass protests. Inandi, who holds dual Turkish-Kyrgyz citizenship, had been living in Kyrgyzstan since 1995.[162] One month later, Turkish President Erdoğan said on July 5 that Turkish intelligence agents had abducted Inandi and accused him of being "a top Central Asian leader" of the Gülen movement.[163] Kyrgyz officials have denied claims they colluded with Turkish intelligence in the abduction.[162]
Designation as a terrorist group
Gülen movement is adesignated terrorist group according to the following countries and international organizations:
Northern Cyprus,recognised only by Turkey and considered by the international community to be part of theRepublic of Cyprus, also designated the Gülen movement as a terrorist organization in July 2016.
In 2017, according to theForeign and Commonwealth Office and theBritish Parliament'sForeign Affairs Select Committee there was no "evidence to justify the designation of the Gülenists as a terrorist organisation by the UK".[30] The same year,Gilles de Kerchove, the EU Counter-terrorism Coordinator, said that theEuropean Union didn't see the Gülen movement as a terrorist organisation and that the EU would need "substantive" evidence to change its stance.[28][166] In 2018, in a conference with Turkish PresidentErdoğan, German ChancellorAngela Merkel said that Germany needed more evidence to classify the Gülen movement as a terrorist organization.[167]
Assassination of the Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov
One of the suspects in the December 2016 murder of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov on Friday denied links to the faith-based Gülen movement and said he was affiliated with theMenzil Community sect in Turkey. One of 28 suspects in the case, police officer Hasan Tunç, who was friends with the assassin, said he is connected to the Menzil Community sect.[177]
Professional associations
While being both praised and criticized for being market friendly, the Gülen movement has established various professional associations and business networks. Among them Istanbul basedTUSKON is the major non-profit business confederation which aims to promote economic solutions as well as social and political ones. Another one called TUCSIAD is based in China, in addition to DTIK's Asia-Pacific Group which supports the Gülen movement outside of Turkey in China, hoping to influence Turkish politics from the outside.[citation needed]
Popular culture
A documentary movie "Love Is a Verb" was made in 2014 about the Gulen movement[178]
Timeline
1941 - Gülen was born in the village ofKorucuk in thePasinler district ofErzurum, Turkey.
1966 - Gulen is appointed as an Imam to Izmir province, where he established a network of boarding houses known asışık evleri (“lighthouses”) that assisted students with their education.[181]
1972 - Gülen was posted in Manisa where he began the first university preparatory courses in an attempt to prepare ordinary Turkish children for higher education.[182]
1975 - The first student dormitory was established in Izmir with the donations of Gulen supporters, which was entirely free.[183]
1982 - The first "Gülen school" opens in Turkey, it's a secular school.[183]
1986 -Zaman, a daily newspaper in Turkey,[184] begins publication, later becoming one of Turkey's top selling newspapers
1992 - Gülen-inspired businessmen and teachers opened the first international schools in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.[43]
1993 - The movement opens its first TV channel in Turkey,Samanyolu TV.[185]
1993 - Salih Adem, a student from a Gülen-affiliated school, won the first-ever gold medal for Turkey in the International Physics Olympiad and appeared on the cover of the popular science magazineBilim ve Teknik.[186][187]
1993 -Turgut Özal, then President of Turkey, who had openly acknowledged his Kurdish roots and proposed potential resolutions to the PKK conflict, visited Hizmet schools during his official trips to Central Asian countries and expressed his support for them. He was assasinated just after the trip.[59][97]
1994 - Dozens of Gulen inspired schools opened in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.[188]
1994 - The (Turkish) Journalists and Writers Foundation (Gazeteciler ve Yazarlar Vakfi) established, with Gülen as honorary president. Abant Platform Meetings starts which brings Turkish citizens of diverse intellectual and religious backgrounds, including Muslims, secularists, traditionalists, atheists, Christians, leftists, modernists and conservatives, to discuss and debate common positions on key contemporary issues.[190][191]
1996 - The movement opens "Asya Finans", an interest-free bank.[192]
1999 - Gülen went to the United States because of the accusations in Turkey and his health problems.[19]
2000 - At the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2000, Prime MinisterBülent Ecevit ( a well known Leftist) recognized in his speech the importance of Gülen-inspired schools all over the world, and how these schools contribute to the cultures and well-being of Turkey and other countries.[182]
2001 - The next day of September 11, Gulen ran a full page statement onThe New York Times condemning the terrorist attack and stating that the perpetrators are not the representatives of Islam. He stated: "A terrorist cannot be a Muslim, nor can a true Muslim be a terrorist."[195]
2004 - The first Gulen inspired hospital is established in Istanbul.[196][197]
2004 - Establishment ofKimse Yok Mu (Is Anybody There?), a charitable organization;[199] 2010, receives "special" NGO status with United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.[200]
2004 - A television channel opened in Turkey,Kanaltürk.
2008 - Followers of Gülen distributed meat to around 60,000 families during theEid al-Fitr, and doctors who follow Gülen offered free check-ups and treatment in Kurdish regions, conveying the message that Kurds and Turks are brothers in Islam.[202]
2008 - A study emphasized the effectiveness of the Gulen Movement’s non-political approaches to ethnic conflict, suggesting that its educational and community building efforts have helped reduce terrorist recruitment by the PKK and Hizbullah among youth in Mardin, a Kurdish majority city in Turkey.[203]
2009 - More than 50 Gulen inspired schools are active in Europe, primarily in Germany.[204]
2010 - Gulen-inspired schools have expanded to over 1,000 in more than 100 countries across five continents.[205]
2010 - The first private Kurdish language TV channel in Turkey, "Dunya TV", launched by the Gulen movement.[206]
2011 - Two supporters of the movement were elected as AKP MP's, which lasted until 2013, when Erdoğan began targeting the movement using the full power of the government.[102][101]
2012 -Journalists and Writers Foundation [tr] receives "general consultative status" as a Non-Governmental Organization of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations.[207]
2013 -2013 corruption scandal erupts, leading to the resignation of four ministers from Erdoğan’s cabinet. Erdogan blames allegedly Gulen affiliated cops and starts purging hundreds of Police officers linked to the movement. The relationship between the Gülen movement and the Turkish government deteriorates.
2015 - Global Gulen movement members estimated to be 3-6 million. The global number of schools estimated to be 2000 including 1000 in Turkey and 1000 in other countries.[208][209][43]
2016 - In May, Gülen movement was declared a terrorist organization by theTurkish government.
2016 - On July 15, afailed coup attempt takes place; the same night, Erdoğan blames the Gülen movement and by the following morning he purges 2,745 judges and thousands of government officials over alleged ties to the movement. Over 150,000 government officials were fired and over 50,000 arrested in the first months after the coup attempt. Over 12 billion $ worth property linked to Gulen movement were seized by the Turkish government. 1,043 private schools, 1,229 charities and foundations, 19 trade unions, 15 universities and 35 medical institutions affiliated with the movement shut down by the Erdogan government[210][211]
2016 - 15 universities were ordered to close because of alleged ties to Gulen movement. Erdogan starts pressuring African countries to close Gulen schools.
2018 - The number of closed nongovernmental organizations by Turkish government for alleged ties to the Gülen movement exceeds 1500.
2019 - The number of citizens detained for alleged links to the Gülen movement exceeded 500,000.[212]
2024 - Gülen dies in Pennsylvania after previously being treated in a hospital.[213][214] 20,000 attend his funeral in a stadium in NJ.[215] A month laterAlliance for Shared Values, a NY based Hizmet movement non-profit stated its commitment to "consultative decision‑making, localization, pluralism, and the continuation of its core values, including education, dialogue, and humanitarian aid".
^Bulent Temel, Candidacy versus Membership: Is Turkey the Greatest Beneficiary of the European Union" inThe Great Catalyst: European Union Project and Lessons from Greece and Turkey (ed. Bülent Temel:Lexington, 2014), p. 375.
^Simon Robinson, "Building Bridges: Gulen Pontifex" inHizmet Means Service: Perspectives on an Alternative Path within Islam (ed. Martin E. Marty:University of California Press, 2015), p. 78.
^Zeki Saritoprak, "Muslim Perception of Fethullah Gulen and the Hizmet Movement: Accommodating or Hindering Modern Turkey?" inAlternative Islamic Discourses and Religious (eds. Carool Kersten & Susanne Olsson:Ashgate, 2013), p. 70.
^Arango, Tim (26 February 2014)."Turkish Leader Disowns Trials That Helped Him Tame Military".The New York Times. Retrieved27 February 2014.In 2005, years before the trials, a man affiliated with the Gulen movement approached Eric S. Edelman, then the American ambassador, at a party in Istanbul and handed him an envelope containing a handwritten document that supposedly laid out a plan for an imminent coup. But as Edelman recounted, he gave the documents to his colleagues and they were determined to be forgeries.
^Details can be found in English on the site ofthe Democratic Turkey Forum; accessed on 5 April 2001. In the footnotes to translated passages of the book you can find other works on the subject.
^abEbaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 29.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 43.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 90.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Fuchs Ebaugh, Helen Rose (2009).The Gulen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam. Springer. p. 89.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 89.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 84.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Salih, Yucel (December 2013). "Muslim-Christian Dialogue: Nostra Aetated and Fethullah Gulen's Philosophy of Dialogue".Australian eJournal of Theology: 200.
^Michel S.J., Thomas (October–December 2007). ""Fethullah Gulen and Pope John Paul II: "Two Frontrunners for Peace"".Dialogue Asia-Pacific (14):6–8.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 92.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^"History Niagara Foundation".Niagara Foundation.The Niagara Foundation was created in 2004 by a group of Turkish-American businessmen and educators in order to realize the vision of their spiritual leader, Fethullah Gulen, himself a Turkish Muslim scholar and poet, as well as an educational and humanitarian activist. Today the Niagara Foundation is active in nine Midwestern states with 22 branches.
^"Hakkında" [About]. TUSKON. Retrieved18 December 2013.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 3.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
^"Gülen Movement".Pew Research Center. Washington, DC. 15 September 2010. Retrieved2 October 2025.
^Ebaugh, Helen Rose Fuchs (2010).The Gülen movement: a sociological analysis of a civic movement rooted in moderate Islam. Springer. p. 97.ISBN978-1-4020-9893-2.
Akyol, Mustafa (7 December 2017)."Gulenists Speak Out at Last".Al-Monitor. - a review of former Hizmet participants' scholarly commentary about the movement
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Turkey, since May 2016[27]
Gulf Cooperation Council, since October 2016[26]
Pakistan, since December 2018[25][165]
"Trump explored cutting grants for schools tied to Erdogan foe".The Eagle. Archived fromthe original on 29 October 2019.