Turkish cleric Fethullah Gülen, accused of 2016 coup plot, dies at 83 in U.S.

KATHMANDU: Turkey’s state television has reported the death of Fethullah Gülen, a Muslim cleric based in the United States.

Ankara has long accused Gülen of being the mastermind behind the failed coup attempt in 2016.

Citing a post by a group close to Gülen on X (formerly Twitter) and other social media platforms, they announced that the 83-year-old cleric passed away at a hospital on Sunday.

Gülen led the Hizmet movement, which Turkey considers a ‘terrorist’ organization.

He was accused of orchestrating the 2016 coup attempt aimed at toppling the powerful government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Gülen had been living in Pennsylvania since 1999. The Turkish government revoked his citizenship in 2017.