UNTIL recently, most Turks remembered Hakan Sukur as the man who scored the fastest goal in World Cup history, leading the national team to a third-place finish in 2002. Today many of them see him as an unwitting accomplice to the failed coup in which 270 people were killed earlier this month. Mr Sukur belongs to the Gulen community, or cemaat, a secretive Islamic movement. Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, blames the Gulenists for organising the coup. Most Turks agree.
The cemaat presents itself internationally as the face of enlightened Islam. Led by a reclusive Turkish-born, American-based cleric, Fethullah Gulen, the sect preaches democracy, interfaith dialogue and education. It runs a sprawling network of charities, banks, media outlets and business groups, as well as thousands of schools, both at home and abroad. Its supporters include journalists, politicians and public figures, including one of the country’s best basketball players and, in Mr Sukur, its most accomplished footballer.
Yet the cemaat is also known to have a clandestine arm—a network of sympathisers who have colonised...Continue reading
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