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ANKARA, Turkey (AP) – A Turkish court on Wednesday again rejected a request for the release of a Turkish-based US pastor who is being tried for helping terrorist groups and carrying out terrorist activities. ;spying.
Brunson, a 50-year-old evangelical pastor from Black Mountain, North Carolina, was arrested as a result of a coup attempt in 2016 for alleged links with the Workers Party Kurdistan, PKK, as well as a network led by the Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, which Turkey attributes to unrest.
Brunson, who incurs up to 35 years in prison for "committing crimes on behalf of terrorist groups without being a member" and "spying", strongly rejects the charges. Gulen denied any involvement in the attempted coup d'etat
At the end of the third hearing, the court of a prison complex in the city of Aliaga, in the west from Turkey, rejected the request of Brunson 's lawyer. The case was adjourned until October 12th.
The Brunson case has added to already tense Turkish-American relations, with some US politicians calling for sanctions against Turkey if Brunson is not released.
U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted in Brunson's defense earlier in the year, saying, "They call him a Spy, but I'm more of a Spy than him." Brunson's case was among the issues that Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed over the phone earlier this week.
S Addressing reporters at the end of the hearing, the top diplomat of the United States in Turkey expressed his disappointment. I have attended three hearings and I do not believe that there is any indication that Pastor Brunson is guilty of any criminal or terrorist activity, "said Philip Kosnett, who is in charge of the case. business at the US embbady. "Our government remains deeply concerned about its status."
Kosnett added: "We have great confidence in the Turkish people's involvement in justice and will follow this case of and hope that Pastor Brunson will soon be reunited with his family. "
During the hearing, Brunson rejected the evidence against him given by two witnesses, who were not named and who claimed that the pastor was supporting Kurdish militants, reported the government agency Anadolu, "said Mr. Brunson at court," I forgive those who lie and bear false testimony against me. "
Brunson was pastor of the Church of the Resurrection of Izmir, a small Protestant congregation, and lived in Turkey for 23 years.
Jail sentence for crimes Brunson is accused of committing on behalf of the Gulen group and the PKK. They want the pastor to serve another 20 years when he is also found guilty of obtaining state secrets for the purpose of political and military spying, using his religious work as a cover.
The indictment against him – based on the testimony of three witnesses of the secret evidence and digital evidence that the pastor was working to convert the Kurds to Christianity to sow discord in Turkey.
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