Merkel, Obama asked to extradite fugitive prosecutors, Gülen

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan held one-on-one meetings with world leaders during the G20 summit in Antalya, which ended Monday, included U.S. President Barack Obama. According to a report in Millet daily on Tuesday Erdoğan discussed the extradition of the controversial fugitive cleric, Fetullah Gülen, who lives in self-imposed exile in the U.S. in Pennsylvania. The agenda of the recently held summit in Antalya was topped by the terror attacks in Paris and G20 leaders discussed terror. Erdoğan discussed the threat caused by Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ) with Obama and reportedly urged for the return of the organization's leader.

Explaining details of the threat FETÖ leader Gülen imposes on Turkey, Erdoğan reportedly urged Obama to cancel Gülen's residence permit and deport him. During the meeting between two leaders, Erdoğan reiterated that the PKK and FETÖ as well as DAESH are not only an enemy of Turkey but also of the entire world. Along with Erdoğan's meeting with Obama, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and brought up the arrest warrants issued for Gülenist former prosecutors Zekeriya Öz and Celal Kara, who are wanted for orchestrating the Dec. 17 and Dec. 25 operations in an apparent attempt to oust the elected government in Turkey.

According a report, Davutoğlu told Merkel that investigations in Turkey revealed that a large number of fugitive FETÖ members are in Germany. In this regard, Davutoğlu reportedly told Merkel that the extradition process for these Gülenists must be paced up as it is highly important for combating terror. Additionally, Justice Minister Kenan İpek also recently said: "The ministry will take concrete steps in upcoming days," and the legal procedure for the return of Gülen from the United States has officially begun. He also said he spoke with the German ambassador regarding extradition of Öz and Kara.