Pastor Andrew Brunson has now been released from house arrest in Turkey and returned to the United States, but the lessons of his captivity should not be forgotten. In the long saga of Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s refusal to release Brunson, the pastor was held for months in a single cell along with 17 Muslim prisoners […]
Turkey releases US Pastor Andrew Brunson after holding him for two years on false charges
Another triumph of Trump administration diplomacy. The Erdogan regime had hoped to trade Brunson for Fetuhullah Gulen, whom Erdogan has scapegoated as the supposed leader of a coup against him (Gulen and Erdogan are both adherents of political Islam; their rift is personal). Instead, Brunson is coming home. “Pastor Andrew Brunson released to U.S. diplomatic […]
Turkey: document reveals Pastor Brunson’s real “crime” is “Christianization”
An American citizen, Pastor Andrew Brunson, is facing up to 35 years in a Turkish prison on fake “terrorism and espionage related charges.” Brunson’s witnesses were not even listened to, amid “wild conspiracies, tortured logic, and secret witnesses, but no real evidence to speak of.” Most recently, Mehmet Erdoğan, a deputy for the Turkish ruling party, […]
Hugh Fitzgerald: Only Erdogan Can Lift the Lira
Since the beginning of the year the Turkish lira has lost 44 percent of its value against the dollar, and it continues to plummet. There are many reasons for this fall in value. First, one might point to the economic recovery plan that Turkey followed, beginning in 2001, the brainchild of the economist Kemal Dervish, […]
Turkish deputy from ruling party accuses imprisoned American pastor of looting Iraq’s gold
The absurdity of this is obvious from the photograph purporting to prove it. The photo supposedly showing a U.S. soldier named “Brown” holding a gold bar is clearly not Brunson. Nor is this kind of accusation the behavior of an actual ally. https://twitter.com/mehmeterdogan27/status/1031436840958611456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1031436840958611456&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fahvalnews.com%2Fconspiracy-theories%2Fbrunson-looted-iraqs-gold-says-akp-deputy “Brunson looted Iraq’s gold, says AKP deputy,” Ahval News, August 22, 2018 […]
Trump: “Turkey has been a problem for a long time. They have not acted as a friend.”
Indeed. For years I have called for a reconfiguration of our international alliances based on the new realities of the resurgent jihad threat. We are still working with Cold War alliances that simply aren’t real: Turkey is indeed not a friend, and has not been for quite some time. It would be better to recognize […]
US slaps sanctions on two Turkish leaders over Pastor Brunson’s detention, Erdogan defiant
Said Erdogan: “You cannot make Turkey take a step back with sanctions. They need to know the following: we are not tied with an umbilical cord to the U.S.” Good. Rapidly re-Islamizing Turkey has not been a reliable ally of the United States for some time, and it is foolish to pretend otherwise. This sham […]
Trump: “United States will impose large sanctions on Turkey for their long time detainment of Pastor Andrew Brunson”
This is long overdue. Turkey has not been behaving like an ally of the United States for a long time, without Washington taking the slightest notion of the change. There needs to be much more of holding Turkey accountable for its actions against its Christian minorities and its increasing regional adventurism. Imagine in general how […]
Turkey dismisses all witnesses called by pastor accused of terrorism and espionage without hearing them
The American Center for Law and Justice declares: “Pastor Andrew is innocent. This isn’t a real trial – it’s a show trial. He’s being held as a political prisoner because of his Christian faith.” Erdogan seems unconcerned that this persecution of Pastor Andrew could have a negative impact on Turkey’s status in NATO or its […]
Turkey jails American Christian pastor on “terrorism” allegations
Non-Muslims are in an increasingly precarious position in rapidly re-Islamizing Turkey. While august institutions and government bodies wring their hands over “Islamophobia,” the Muslim persecution of Christians continues apace, and the persecutors are growing bolder and more aggressive in the face of the prevailing international indifference. “UPDATE: Turkey jails US pastor on ‘terrorism’ allegations,” by […]