Gülen has lived in exile in the United States since 1999, despite a number of Turkish attempts to have him extradited. On the night of Monday, the resistance figure died during a hospital stay. Turkish authorities have confirmed the death, which was first reported by Turkish TV.
Gülen and his movement were singled out as an archenemy by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government. They accused him, among other things, of being behind the coup attempt in Turkey in 2016, accusations Gülen himself has rejected.
Thousands of alleged followers of the preacher have since been imprisoned, over 3,000 of them for life. Over 140,000 others have been fired from public positions, including teachers and police officers.
Going to die out
The late imam is known for being the founder of the religious and social Gülen movement in the 1970s. It stands for a moderate interpretation of Islam and has a million-strong following in Turkey. In May 2016, the movement, which is better known by the name Hizmet, was put on the authorities’ terrorist list.
Middle East researcher Mehmet Ümit Necef at the University of Southern Denmark says the Gülen movement will die out with the death of its founder.
– Such movements gather around the strong leader. The leader often has an untouchable aura. It is gone now, says Necef.
He says the group’s weakening started with the failed coup attempt.
– It was a strong movement, which had infiltrated major social institutions in Turkey. Gülen’s death will probably create discontent and political and religious confusion among supporters, he says.
Allies
Previously one of Erdogan’s allies, the Turkish president benefited from Gülen’s network when he came to power in 2003, but they became arch-enemies after the Gülen movement accused the Turkish president of corruption.
In 2013, Gülen was on Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
He lived to be 83 years old.
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