
 
 Turkish Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen is pictured at his residence in Saylorsburg, Pa., in 2013. (Selahattin Sevi/AP) 
 
 The man that Turkey’s leaders have blamed for a failed coup attempt by a group of army officers is an Islamic scholar named Fethullah Gulen, who lives in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania and who has inspired a network said to include more than 160 charter schools in the United States. 
 
 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says that the coup attempt Friday was the work of army officers who are followers of Gulen, who had once been an ally but whose movement has become critical of the increasingly authoritarian regime. 
 
 The Gulen movement denied involvement in the coup, but Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Saturday was quoted as saying the United States would support investigations to determine who instigated the attempted coup and where its support originates. He said he anticipates questions will be raised about Gulen. 
 
 [Turkey foils bloody coup attempt, closes in on remnants of renegade forces] 
 
 Although Gulen lives on a secluded compound in Pennsylvania, he has maintained influence in Turkey through followers in the judiciary and police. Turkish media reported Saturday that 2,745 judges had been removed because of suspicions that they have links to the Gulen movement. 
 
 Fethullah Gulen is an Islamic scholar and cleric from Turkey. He left Turkey in 1999, and is now living in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania. (Claritza Jimenez,Jason Aldag/The Washington Post) 
 
 His followers have also opened many private schools around the globe, including more than 160 science-, math- and technology-focused public charter schools with different names in numerous states around this country. 
 
 The publicly funded charter schools — unofficially known as the Gulen charter — are thought to be operated by people, usually Turks, in or associated with the Gulen movement. Among the leading schools in the network are the Harmony schools in Texas, which have won millions of dollars in grants from the U.S. government and are among the highest-achieving in their communities. (There is also a Harmony charter school in Washington.) 
 
 These schools deny any relationship to Gulen — who is said to adhere to a moderate form of Islam — and the movement denies any relationship to the schools. But Sharon Higgins, an independent researcher on the Gulen movement who has written extensively about it, has said that it is common for officials at the charter schools to deny any connection. She said there are more than 160 Gulen-inspired charters in the country now, making it one of the biggest U.S. charter school networks. 
 
 The charter schools have sparked controversy over the years, with accusations that the Turkish leaders of many of these schools favor Turkish-run businesses when handing out contracts, even over other businesses that come in with lower bids; that they hire large numbers of foreign Turkish teachers on H1-B visas, and that some of them promote Turkish culture through curriculum and cultural exchanges. Critics say that these schools are linked to the Gulen movement and that their refusal to admit it reveals a lack of transparency. In a 2010 story about the Gulen network, USA Today reporter Greg Toppo wrote: 
 
 “… documents available at various foundation websites and in federal forms required of non-profit groups show that virtually all of the schools have opened or operate with the aid of Gulen-inspired “dialogue” groups, local non-profits that promote Turkish culture. In one case, the Ohio-based Horizon Science Academy of Springfield in 2005 signed a five-year building lease with the parent organization of Chicago’s Niagara Foundation, which promotes Gulen’s philosophy of “peace, mutual respect, the culture of coexistence.” Gulen is the foundation’s honorary president. In many cases, charter school board members also serve as dialogue group leaders. Education officials who are familiar with them say the schools aren’t trying to proselytize for Gulen’s vision of Turkey. While Turkish language and culture are often offered in the curriculum, there’s no evidence the schools teach Islam. 
 
 In 2011, the New York Times reported on the Harmony charter school network in Texas: 
 
 The growth of these “Turkish schools,” as they are often called, has come with a measure of backlash, not all of it untainted by xenophobia. Nationwide, the primary focus of complaints has been on hundreds of teachers and administrators imported from Turkey: in Ohio and Illinois, the federal Department of Labor is investigating union accusations that the schools have abused a special visa program in bringing in their expatriate employees. But an examination by The New York Times of the Harmony Schools in Texas casts light on a different area: the way they spend public money. And it raises questions about whether, ultimately, the schools are using taxpayer dollars to benefit the Gulen movement — by giving business to Gulen followers, or through financial arrangements with local foundations that promote Gulen teachings and Turkish culture. 
 
 In 2013, a group of Turks — who operated the Chesapeake Science Point Public Charter School in Anne Arundel County, Md. — attempted to open a charter school in Loudoun County, Va. The application was denied after hearings by the school board at which numerous people testified against the proposal and questions arose about curriculum and other operational issues. 
 
 One of the witnesses at the hearings testified that she and her husband had worked at a Gulen-inspired charter school in Ohio, which was opened in Dayton with the help of one of the Loudoun charter applicants, Fatih Kandil. She said her husband, a Turk, had been been involved in the Gulen movement and that Turkish teachers at the Ohio school had to turn over 40 percent of their salaries to a secret fund used by the movement. In January 2013, Sinan Yildirim, listed as one of the members of the proposed Loudoun school’s initial governing board, was asked (by me) whether he and his fellow applicants were connected to Gulen and he answered: “We said no. They said yes. If they claim something they have to prove. And they can’t prove it.” 
 
 This past May, the Turkish government hired a law firm to file a complaint with the Texas Education Agency against the largest charter school network in the state, the Harmony schools, according to the Dallas Morning News, which reported: 
 
 The firm, Amsterdam & Partners, filed a 32-page complaint … with the state that details “some very concerning issues and some apparent illegal or improper conduct related to these school operators,” said John Martin, senior counsel for the firm. Among the allegations: Harmony hires under-qualified Turkish teachers and steers business to companies run by Turkish nationals, including some former Harmony employees. Soner Tarim, Harmony’s chief executive officer, called the complaint “ridiculous and baseless.” He said it’s a politically motivated attack by Turkey’s president, whom he says most Turks living in the U.S. don’t support. Many allegations are old and have been addressed, settled or dismissed, he said. 
 
 How did Gulen get to Pennsylvania? 
 
 He first applied for a special visa to come into the United States more than 10 years ago, but the Department of Homeland Security denied it. A lawsuit challenging that decision was filed in 2007 in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia, saying that Gulen was “head of the Gulen Movement,” and an important educational figure who had “overseen” the creation of a network of schools in the United States as well as in other countries, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported in 2011. He was granted a green card in 2008. ||||| A nondescript driveway with a guard gate off a rural Pennsylvania one-lane road. 
 
 Tucked away in the Poconos lies the compound where Fethullah Gulen , a moderate Turkish Muslim cleric, has been in self-imposed exile from his country since 1999. 
 
 For years, journalists have tried to get in, but very few have succeeded. 
 
 This time, reporters have gathered to cover a protest on the road in front of the compound after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan publicly accused Gulen of organizing a failed coup from nearly halfway around the world. 
 
 Gulen rarely emerges, we're told, and only for medical appointments. 
 
 JUST WATCHED Protesters gather at exiled Turkish cleric's house Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH Protesters gather at exiled Turkish cleric's house 01:39 
 
 But as the protests wound down outside the complex, his guards emerged, inviting media here to enter for a tour. 
 
 Beyond the gates is a sprawling complex. Several buildings, a garden, a pond. 
 
 The grounds are quiet, and few people are here. 
 
 Journalists are shown around and allowed to take pictures, then taken to a small building with a table and chairs and air conditioning. We're brought coffee and water, and told that if we wait, we might get to talk to Gulen's press aid, and possibly Gulen himself. 
 
 We're told he's in poor health, and needs to rest, but if we wait, he may talk about the accusations made against him. 
 
 Erdogan and Gulen are former allies whose relationship fell into a bitter feud in 2013. Erdogan supporters outside Gulen's Pennsylvania home called him inflammatory names. Gulen's supporters accused Erdogan of scapegoating Gulen after the failed coup in an attempt to grab more power. 
 
 The former president of Gulen's mosque, Bekir Aksoy, says Gulen, in his late 70s, barely ever leaves his room. 
 
 "This was the exception," he says, because of the seriousness of the accusations Erdogan made against him on worldwide television. 
 
 JUST WATCHED The man blamed for Turkish coup attempt Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH The man blamed for Turkish coup attempt 01:41 
 
 "He never goes out of that building, he never goes out of his room, really," Aksoy says. "Except for talking to people for afternoon prayer and also for the regular prayer times, that's all." 
 
 Then, after about an hour, reporters are led in. We remove our shoes, and are escorted in to a room where Gulen sits waiting in a chair. 
 
 Through his interpreter, he answers one question from each reporter. 
 
 He tells us his self-exile was to get away from political opponents who were harassing him in Turkey, and that he rejects the idea of being involved in a coup, having lived through many military coups in Turkey in the '60s, '70s and '80s, and having been jailed at least once. 
 
 "My position on democracy is really clear. Any attempt to overthrow the country is a betrayal to our unity and is treason," he says. 
 
 He denies the accusations against him by Erdogan and says he wishes to stay in the United States, in what he calls "the final days of his life." 
 
 "I'm not seriously concerned about the request for extradition as it was mentioned this is not a formal request, anyway," Gulen says. 
 
 As the interview concludes, Gulen says something to his interpreter, and we are given access to his living quarters, a quaint space decorated with personal belongings from his years in Turkey. 
 
 It consists of little more than a bed and bookshelves. 
 
 The man accused of orchestrating a coup spends his time here. One of his aides compares it to a cell. 
 
 On our way out, we're shown a lit-panorama of Istanbul. His aides say Gulen believes this is the closest he'll ever be to his home again. 
 
 And then we're given Turkish delight and other sweets. His press aide says it's so we will leave with a good taste in our mouths. ||||| Why Is A Cleric In The Poconos Accused Of Fomenting Turkey's Coup Attempt? 
 
 Enlarge this image toggle caption Murad Sezer/AP Murad Sezer/AP 
 
 As Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan began re-establishing control Saturday, he immediately pointed the finger of blame for the failed coup attempt against him. 
 
 So who does he consider most responsible? A rogue general? 
 
 Nope. Erdogan directed his outrage at an elderly, reclusive Muslim cleric living in Pennsylvania's Poconos: Fethullah Gulen. 
 
 "I have a message for Pennsylvania: You have engaged in enough treason against this nation. If you dare, come back to your country," Erdogan said Saturday in reference to Gulen, not the entire Keystone State. 
 
 Erdogan and Gulen used to be buddies. Both were considered moderate Islamists. Gulen encouraged his many followers to support Erdogan, who in turn helped raise the profile of Gulen, who runs a vast network of Islamic schools worldwide, including more than 100 charter schools in the United States. 
 
 Both men benefited from the relationship. But they had a falling out in 2013 over a corruption investigation that targeted Erdogan and some of his closest allies. Erdogan apparently believed Gulen's allies in the judiciary were responsible for the inquiry, and responded by dismissing many in the judicial system considered close to Gulen, a powerful political force in his own right. 
 
 Gulen, who's in his mid-70s, denounced the coup attempt and said he had no role in it. 
 
 "As someone who suffered under multiple military coups during the past five decades, it is especially insulting to be accused of having any link to such an attempt," Gulen said in a statement. "I categorically deny such accusations." 
 
 A worldwide following 
 
 He has many Sunni Muslim followers, estimated at anywhere from 1 million to 8 million worldwide, and his religious views are generally considered mainstream, though some in secular Turkey are suspicious of him. 
 
 Since 1999, Gulen has lived at the Golden Generation Worship and Retreat Center, a compound in Saylorsburg, Pa., which serves as the headquarters for his Alliance of Shared Values. 
 
 He rarely gives interviews but spoke to The Atlantic in 2013. He was asked why he remained in Pennsylvania rather than return to Turkey, and gave this intriguing response: 
 
 "I am concerned that certain circles are waiting for an opportunity to reverse the democratic reforms that were started in the early 1990s and accelerated in the last decade. I am concerned that these elements will try to take advantage of my return by putting the government in a difficult position. ... Additionally, while in Turkey, I would seek corrections and possible legal actions against libel and slander. Here, I am away from such harassment, and I am less affected by them. I find this place more tranquil." 
 
 Gulen was already facing legal problems in his homeland before Friday's attempted coup. 
 
 An Istanbul court last October issued an arrest warrant for him following an indictment that charged him with "attempting to overthrow the government of the Republic of Turkey or obstructing it from conducting its duties by force," according to Anadolu, the Turkish news agency. 
 
 Meanwhile, Secretary of State John Kerry said Saturday the U.S. would consider an extradition request for Gulen, but stressed that Turkey would have to present evidence of wrongdoing on his part, The Associated Press reported. 
 
 Kerry, who was in Luxembourg, noted that Turkey hasn't made such a request, though he anticipated that Turkey would raise the issue. ||||| Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is blaming a longtime political foe and cleric living in exile in Pennsylvania for being behind the recent failed military coup in Turkey. 
 
 Fethullah Gulen, the founder of what is often described as a moderate Islamic movement which remains strong in Turkey, has also been linked to science- and math-focused charter schools run by Turkish educators across this country. 
 
 Most recently, local media outlets in California, Ohio, and Texas have reported on charter schools with alleged ties to Gulen, though he does not directly run any charters. 
 
 Still, the Republic of Turkey has hired the Washington- and London-based law firm, Amsterdam & Partners, to investigate over 100 charter schools founded by followers of Gulen's movement, according to the Associated Press. Erdogan's government has raised objections to a variety of issues related to the schools, including the hiring of Turkish nationals to teach in the charters. But Gulen's supporters say Erdogan's interest in the U.S. charters is entirely political. 
 
 It's a fight the Turkish government has taken all the way down to the local district level of American politics. 
 
 According to the San Jose Mercury News, a representative from Amsterdam & Partners appeared at a Fremont, Calif., school board hearing in January to protest Magnolia Public Schools' application to open a new charter school there. 
 
 Earlier this month, the Houston Chronicle reported that a Texas state lawmaker asked the state attorney general's office to investigate a large charter school network there which, the paper said, was part of a bigger effort organized by the Turkish government. 
 
 Amsterdam & Partners filed a complaint with the Texas Education Agency accusing Harmony Public Schools of taking advantage of the U.S. visa program and favoring vendors with ties to Gulen's movement. 
 
 In 2014, the Beacon Journal in Akron, Ohio, reported that several schools in the state under the Concept Schools charter network had come under scrutiny for almost exclusively hiring teachers of Turkish heritage. An investigation by the paper found that the schools were affiliated with a foundation that paid for state lawmakers to travel to Turkey. Former employees of the schools also told the paper that they were compelled to donate large portions of their salaries to Gulen's movement. 
 
 Related stories: 
 
 Don't miss another Charters & Choice post. Sign up here to get news alerts in your email inbox. ||||| CLOSE Turkey's president says the coup was organized by the followers of Fethullah Gülen, a cleric living in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania. Video provided by Newsy Newslook 
 
 Turkish Prime Minister and the leader of Turkey's ruling party, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) , Binali Yildirim stands as he speaks during the AK Party's group meeting at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara on July 19, 2016. (Photo: Adem Altan, AFP/Getty Images) 
 
 Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim confirmed Tuesday an official request was sent to the United States for the extradition of Fethullah Gulen, a suspect linked to Friday's coup attempt, according to state-run media. 
 
 “We have sent four dossiers to the United States for the extradition of the terrorist chief," Turkish Prime Minister Birnili Yildirim said during the ruling Justice and Development Party meeting at the parliament in Ankara, the Anadolu Agency reported. 
 
 Mark Toner, deputy spokesman at the State Department, said Turkey this morning sent the State Department materials “which we are in the process of analyzing under the treaty” that governs extradition requests. 
 
 “I am not in position at this point in time to judge whether they constitute a formal extradition request,” Toner said. “There’s a well-defined process in place that govern these types of actions.” 
 
 Toner added that this was not an "overnight process" and that he did not want to comment on the documents until "we determine they constitute a formal extradition request.” 
 
 White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the materials would be reviewed by the Departments of State and Justice. 
 
 President Obama spoke by telephone Tuesday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reiterating U.S. commitment to the democratically elected government of Turkey, but also urging those arrested in the wake of the coup attempt be afforded their rights of due process under the Turkish Constitution, Earnest said. 
 
 Gulen has denied allegations that he was involved in the overthrow attempt and told reporters that he would have tried to stop any takeover had he known about it. 
 
 “I condemn and reject in the strongest terms the attempted coup,” Gulen, 77, said in an interview Monday with USA TODAY and several other reporters. 
 
 Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday that if an extradition request for Gulen was made, the U.S. would agree to it only if there were compelling proof of wrongdoing by the cleric. 
 
 "We need to see genuine evidence that withstands the standard of scrutiny that exists in many countries' system of law with respect to the issue of extradition," Kerry said. "If it meets that standard, there's nothing — there's no interest we have in standing in the way of appropriately honoring the treaty that we have with Turkey." 
 
 Earnest said Monday that "the suggestion that somehow the United States is harboring Mr. Gulen is factually incorrect." 
 
 Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said there are 9,322 suspects involved in the coup attempt and all are going through legal procedures, Kurtulmus said. 
 
 A thousand pro-government protesters rallied in Istanbul on Tuesday, waving flags and demanding the death penalty for those involved with the coup, the Associated Press reported. 
 
 The Supreme Council of Radio and Television also canceled licenses of 24 Gulen-linked broadcasters — including Samanyolu, Can Erzincan television and Dunya Radio, according to the agency. 
 
 Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, who lives in Pennsylvania, speaks to reporters July 18, 2016. (Photo: Oren Dorell, USA TODAY) 
 
 Erdogan, who beat down the attempted coup by Saturday morning, has rounded up and dismissed thousands of members of the military, police and judiciary he accuses of being followers of Gulen and plotting against Turkey’s democratically elected government. 
 
 Turkey’s Board of Higher Education requested resignations from 1,577 university deans. Of the deans dismissed, 1,176 worked in public universities and 401 in private institutions, Anadolu reported Tuesday. 
 
 Gulen, a former political ally of Erdogan, preaches a moderate form of Islam and has lived in self-exile in Pennsylvania since 1999. His followers run a network of charter schools and cultural centers in the United States and are prolific political donors. 
 
 Contributing: Gregg Zoroya in Mclean, Va.; Oren Dorell in Washington, D.C. 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/2a7SiCQ ||||| Living next to the man Erdoğan blames for trying to overthrow the Turkish government has its perks – dinner invitations, for example 
 
 The rural town of Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, seems unfazed by the attempted military coup that rocked Turkey overnight on Friday, and threatened to destabilise the region. 
 
 Fethullah Gülen: Turkey coup may have been 'staged' by Erdoğan regime Read more 
 
 At a little over 5,000 miles away from Istanbul – Turkey’s biggest city and the heart of the country’s failed putsch – that is hardly surprising, save for the fact that the uprising’s alleged mastermind, Fethullah Gülen, has made his home in Saylorsburg. 
 
 His presence causes commotion from time to time. When Turkey is sporadically plunged into political chaos, attention often turns towards his guarded compound. It was the same on Friday, when residents could hear helicopters circling over Gülen’s home. 
 
 Apart from mysterious choppers, there are also the occasional anti-Gülen protesters. Sometimes they drive up and down Mt Eaton Road, one of the main thoroughfares in the farming town, waving the Turkish flag out of their windows. 
 
 Apart from that, living next to the man who Recep Tayyip Erdoğan personally blames for trying to overthrow the government has few downsides. Indeed, it can have perks – invitations to Thanksgiving dinner, for example. Or, even, some claim, a trip to Turkey. 
 
 
 
 To the wider world, Gülen’s living arrangements are shrouded in secrecy. It is peculiar enough that the leader of the Hizmet movement, in self-exile from Turkey, lives in a small Pennsylvania town, nestled in the Poconos. 
 
 Have you been affected by the attempted coup in Turkey? Read more 
 
 He sleeps in a small and spartan room in a sprawling complex, the Golden Generation Worship and Retreat Center, where his movement offers religious instruction. At any given time, there are up to 80 visitors undergoing religious retreats. For a man widely described as reclusive, he has many guests, including Saylorsburg residents. 
 
 
 
 Chuck Parker, who lives down the road from Gülen, said: “When we have the traditional Thanksgiving, he has a dinner then. He also has a dinner for Ramadan.” He and many other residents have received invitations, which often come with a personal touch. “They usually hand-deliver it, or one of the guys brings it over.” 
 
 The dinners arouse much interest among some of the residents. One elderly man, who asked not to be named, said: “I went to a dinner four years ago. My mother was 97. She always wanted to go, because other neighbors from the area went. And then we went.” 
 
 World leaders express support for Turkey after attempted coup Read more 
 
 The man, who was taking a break from picking cucumbers from his vegetable patch, said: “I’ve been to his dinners a couple of times. They treat you nice. You don’t see him,” he said, referring to Gülen. “They escort you to the building. They tell you where to park. There is an escort there, and an escort back.” 
 
 Residents agree that the warm welcome and hospitality that Gülen offers residents is a defining feature of the group’s presence in the town. Holly Parker, a stained-glass artist who has received invitations to the dinners, said: “According to the Muslim culture, they invite the neighbors for things … They do it to extend themselves out into the community a little bit. I think they realize that there might be a few people in the community who might be wary.” 
 
 Though none of the people the Guardian met in Saylorsburg had anything bad to say about the neighborliness of Gülen, Parker suggested that some residents might “feel iffy” about the group being headquartered in their town. “Some people are a little wary, and have questions like: why are they here? Why are they in the country?” But, she insists, she has no complains to make of them. “They’ve been very nice.” 
 
 Some residents have gotten very close to Gülen. “Some of the neighbors have had more personal and close contact,” Parker said. “A friend of ours, whose mother lives next door to the camp, he’s a contractor in the area. He did a lot of building for them, when they were building the resort situation back there.” 
 
 
 
 The Guardian was not able to reach the contractor, Howard Beers Jr, but two residents confirmed that he had worked for Gülen. “Several years ago, they offered to take him and his wife to tour Turkey,” said Parker. Beers wasn’t the only resident to have been invited to Turkey by the organization. “At the time, they offered to take our pastor as well. He didn’t go.” Parker added that, back then, the members of the movement, which often promotes interfaith dialogue, would visit her non-denominational church “every once in a while”. 
 
 Some locals see the presence of the well-funded Hizmet movement as a business opportunity. “When I am ready to sell this house, I am going to go to the Turks, and see if they want to buy it,” said the elderly neighbor who was taking a break from the vegetable patch. He added that a contractor, presumably Beers, had “made his millions” working for Gülen. 
 
 'We thought coups were in the past': how Turkey was caught unaware Read more 
 
 Others in the area are catering to the movement in different ways. Parker recalled: “It’s interesting, the local K-Mart for a while was playing what I think was popular Turkish music down at [the nearby town of] Wind Gap. There are a lot of Turkish families moving in. You see them in the local stores sometimes.” 
 
 Fleeting glimpses of the Turkish community prompts different responses among longtime residents. “If you drive early in the morning, you see moms standing out with their children along the road waiting for the bus. I look and think, I just hope there is enough of a community ... It must be very lonely to be a mom and isolated in this area.” Chuck Parker, her husband, added: “I always wave to the ladies. Sometimes they are a little shy.” 
 
 
 
 If Gülen is extending a hand of friendship to his neighbors, many are returning the gesture. “We’re all immigrants here,” said Parker. “In my family, we’re part French, Hungarian, English. This is what America is about. We weren’t liked when we arrived either. But we’re Americans now.” ||||| The Atlantic: It's so rare to have an interview with you, why is that? 
 
 Fethullah Gulen: I grew up in a humble family with a shy personality. I accept these kind offers out of respect for those who are requesting such interviews, otherwise, I would prefer to live a secluded life just by myself. 
 
 We just saw your living quarters, and I saw a very small bed, a small mat, a small room. When you can have all the space you need, why do you use such a small area for yourself? 
 
 My whole life has been this way, during my years as a student, and later on in life I have always lived in such humble spaces. It's because I would like to live like my fellow citizens because I consider myself among them. By no means do I consider myself superior in any sense. Also, it is in my nature. I believe in the hereafter; I believe that's the true life, therefore I don't want to attach myself too much to this world. 
 
 Do you still teach every day? 
 
 I try to spend time with the students here every day as much as my health allows me. Some days my health prevents me from doing so, but I'd like to continue to study with them for as long as I am alive. 
 
 I heard you had no female students. 
 
 In Turkey, our friends are running a program in which female students are taking graduate-level courses in divinity. Here, the same system couldn't be replicated, but there are ladies who regularly follow the lectures. 
 
 Sitki Ozcan 
 
 According to Islamic tradition, is the role of women limited to motherhood? 
 
 No, it is not. The noble position of motherhood aside, our general opinion about women is that, while taking into account their specific needs, it should be made possible for them to take on every role, including the jobs of physician, military officer, judge and president of a country. As a matter of fact, in every aspect of life throughout history Muslim women made contributions to their society. In the golden age (referring to the years during Mohammed's lifetime) starting with Aisha, Hafsa, and Um Salama (the Prophet's wives), had their places among the jurists and they taught men. 
 
 When these examples are taken into consideration, it would be clearly understood that it is out of the question to restrict the lives of women, narrowing down their activities. Unfortunately, the isolation of women from social activities in some places today, a practice that stems from the misinterpretation of Islamic sources, has been a subject of a worldwide propaganda campaign against Islam. 
 
 If there is one thing that you would say to people here in this country who don't know a lot about you, your beliefs and your teachings, what would that message be? 
 
 I don't have a need to promote myself. I've never sought to be known or recognized by people. I simply share ideas I believe in with people around me. If people recognize me despite that, that's their mistake. But my core belief is to seek peace in the world, helping people eliminate certain malevolent attitudes through education as much as possible. An Arabic proverb says: "If something cannot be attained fully, it shouldn't be abandoned completely."
– The US will soon have a dicey decision to make in regard to the failed coup in Turkey. The government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has formally requested that the US extradite the man it says is responsible for the uprising, moderate Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, reports USA Today. The 77-year-old Gulen lives in small-town Pennsylvania, 5,000 miles away from Turkey, and continues to insist he had nothing to do with the coup. So who is this cleric? Some related coverage: NPR provides some quick basics: Gulen used to be allies with Erdogan until a falling out in 2013. Erdogan apparently suspected Gulen was behind a corruption inquiry into his government. The Guardian profiles Gulen's life in tiny Saylorsburg, Pa., where he arrived in self-exile in 1999 and is seen as a friendly neighbor to the locals. He lives at a complex where his Hizmet religious movement is taught. Gulen's followers are estimated to number between 1 million and 8 million worldwide. CNN says his personal living quarters "consists of little more than a bed and bookshelves." He gave a rare interview to the Atlantic in 2013, expressing fears that democratic reforms in Turkey would be reversed. "I find it more tranquil here," he said of Pennsylvania. Turkish followers of Gulen are said to have created math and science charter schools around the world, including 160 that are publicly funded in the US. However, any official connection between the schools and Gulen is denied. The Washington Post takes a look. Education Week has more on the subject, rounding up investigations of the schools in multiple states. Critics, for example, have objected to the near-exclusive hiring of Turkish educators, even though the schools get public money.