Germany Accuses Turkey of 'Unacceptable' Spying against Gulen Supporters
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A German official accused Turkey of carrying out “unacceptable” spying on its soil amid allegations Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government sent agents after more than 300 people.
It is accused of conducting espionage in more than 200 associations and schools linked to supporters of the exiled Turkish businessman Fethullah Gulen.
German media reported that the head of Turkey's MIT intelligence agency handed over the names of hundreds of suspected Gulenists to Germany's Federal Intelligence Service during last month's Munich Security Conference.
Some of the images included were allegedly secretly recorded using CCTV and other means, showing they had been gained using espionage.
"We are horrified at how openly Turkey reveals that it is spying on Turks living here," a German security official said, the Independent reported.
Ankara has accused Gulen of plotting an attempted coup against the Turkish President in July but he has denied involvement and the allegations are doubted by much of Europe and the US.
His “Hizmet” movement admits some of its supporters may have been involved in the failed uprising, which left hundreds dead, but ensuing purges seeing thousands jailed and newspapers shut down have been seen as a wider crackdown on dissent.
The Turkish President hit out at the head of Germany’s BND foreign intelligence service on Friday for suggesting Berlin is not convinced that Gulen orchestrated July’s coup.
