Emails Show Clinton Ties to Supporters of Turkish Cleric Fethullah Gulen

Image Newly released Hillary Clinton emails show that two Turkish businessmen who are top lieutenants of a Turkish cleric living in the U.S. received help from the then secretary of state's aide Huma Abedin in 2009, The Daily Caller reports. Other emails released show that the two businessmen, Gokhan Ozkok and Recep Ozkan, were on the guest list for a June 2012 Clinton Foundation dinner held at Clinton's home. The series of emails from the two praise Clinton and emphasize that Turkish Americans believe in her friendship. They provide further evidence of the ties the two have fostered with Clinton over the years, at the same time they have worked for Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who lives in self-exile in Pennsylvania and whom the Turkish government has demanded that the U.S. extradite.

Ozkok and Ozkan have also contributed money to Clintons presidential campaigns and gained access to her through Abedin, Clinton's longest serving aide. The New York Post has also raised questions about Abedin, revealing that for a decade she edited a radical Muslim publication that opposed women's rights and blamed the U.S. for 9/11.

The U.S. has confirmed it has received a formal extradition request from Turkey for Gulen, but not over the July coup attempt the Turkish authorities has accused him of planning, The Guardian reports. This comes as Vice President Joe Biden meets on Wednesday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erodgan in Ankara.

The emails and strain in Turkish relations raises questions over whether Clinton's ties to Gulen's supporters will influence her policy toward Ankara if she becomes president. In addition to the Turkish allegations against Gulen, The Daily Caller reports that he has drawn scrutiny in the U.S. over alleged visa violations and illegal construction deals connected with his vast American charter school system and think tanks promoting his teachings. By Brian Freeman  \ http://www.newsmax.com)
Last modified onSaturday, 06 May 2017 10:07