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Publish date18 Apr 2018 - 13:39
Story Code : 325272

Trump tweets support for US pastor jailed in Turkey

United States President Donald Trump voiced his support on April 17 for Pastor Andrew Brunson, who is on trial in Turkey on charges of espionage and terrorism, in a case that has compounded strains in U.S.-Turkish relations.
Trump tweets support for US pastor jailed in Turkey
“Pastor Andrew Brunson, a fine gentleman and Christian leader in the United States, is on trial and being persecuted in Turkey for no reason,” Trump tweeted.
“They call him a spy, but I am more a spy than he is. Hopefully he will be allowed to come home to his beautiful family where he belongs!” wrote the U.S. president.
Brunson, a Christian pastor from North Carolina who has lived in Turkey for more than two decades, was indicted on charges of helping the Fethullah Gülen network, widely believed to have orchestrated the July 15, 2016 failed coup.
He has been a pastor at the İzmir Resurrection Church, serving a small Protestant congregation in Turkey’s third largest city.
The U.S. pastor’s trial is one of several legal cases roiling U.S.-Turkish relations.
Brunson’s lawyer argued that the pastor, who had been detained 18 months ago, is in custody because of his religious beliefs.
The prosecutor’s office said sufficient evidence had been obtained to charge Brunson with aiding armed terrorist organizations and obtaining confidential government information for political and military espionage.
The prosecutors also accuse the pastor of working both with Gülen’s network and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
https://taghribnews.com/vdca0mneu49nuu1.tgk4.html
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