THE Fethullah Gülenthe self-imposed preacher in the US, who founded a powerful Islamic movement in Turkey and the last years of his life were marked by accusations that he orchestrated the failed coup against the Turkish president in 2016, he died at the age of 83, as Ankara recently confirmed.

The Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan today confirmed the death of Gülen, a sworn enemy of Erdogan but who had condemned the coup attempt.

“Our intelligence sources confirm the death of the leader of the FETO organization. Fethullah Gulen, the leader of the dark organization, is dead,” he said.

“Our nation’s resolve in the fight against terrorism will continue and the news of his death will never lead us to complacency,” Fidan told a news conference.

“This organization has been a rare hotbed of threat in our nation’s history. It deceived thousands of young people to join its ranks in the name of sacred values ​​and turned them into a machine that betrayed their homeland, nation and sacred values.”

The Turkish Foreign Minister, addressing Gülen’s followers, called on them to surrender, saying that “on the occasion of this death, the spell should be lifted from them and I call on them to abandon the treacherous wrong path they have taken, to stop they are working against their state and nation. This road is not a good road. His ending is not good. Our nation and state will continue to fight against this organization, as they fight against all kinds of terrorist organizations. They should leave this road while it’s time.”

Gulen has denied any involvement in the failed coup, but his movement has been designated a terrorist organization by Turkey.

Once an ally of Erdogan, Gülen fell out with him and the Turkish president blamed him for an attempted coup against him in 2016 that killed around 250 people.

Gülen, who had taken refuge in Pennsylvania, USA since 1999, denied any involvement in the coup attempt.

According to his supporters, Gülen’s movement, known as Hizmet, which means “service” in Turkish, seeks to spread a moderate version of Islam that promotes Western-style education, free markets and interfaith communication.

Since the failed coup, his movement has faced systematic crackdowns in Turkey and its influence internationally has declined.

Former ally of Erdogan

Gulen has been a close ally of Erdogan and his Justice and Development party, but the escalating tension between them came to a head in December 2013 when corruption investigations targeting ministers and officials close to Erdogan came to light.

Prosecutors and police from Gulen’s Hizmet movement were widely believed to be behind the investigations, and an arrest warrant was issued for the preacher in 2014, with his movement designated a terrorist organization two years later.

Shortly after the coup attempt in 2016, Erdogan called the Gulen network traitors and “something like a cancer” and vowed to dismantle them wherever they are. Hundreds of schools, companies, associations and publications linked to Gülen were closed and assets confiscated.

Gülen “unequivocally” condemned the coup attempt.

In a statement he said: “As someone who has suffered through the various coups over the past five decades, it is particularly offensive to be accused of being in any way associated with such an attempt.”

In a crackdown after the coup attempt, which the government says targeted Gulen supporters, at least 77,000 people were arrested and 150,000 civil servants, including teachers, judges and soldiers, were suspended under emergency measures.

Companies and media outlets believed to be linked to Gülen were either shut down or seized by the state. The Turkish government said its actions were justified because of the scale of the threat the failed coup posed to the state.

Gulen has also become an unwelcome figure inside Turkey, shunned by Erdogan’s supporters and shunned by the opposition, which has seen his network for decades conspiring to undermine the secular foundations of democracy.

Ankara has long sought his extradition from the US.

Speaking from his compound in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains, Gulen said in a 2017 interview with Reuters that he had no plans to leave the US to avoid extradition. Even then he looked weak, dragging his feet and had his long-time doctor by his side.

Gulen had traveled to the US for medical attention, but remained there as he was the focus of a criminal investigation in Turkey.