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Did Erdogan Stage A Phony Coup So He Could Create An Islamic State In Turkey?

A US-based Turkish cleric accused of plotting a coup to overthrow the Ankara government has claimed President Recep Erdogan staged the rebellion himself.

Published

10 years ago

July 16, 2016

Geoffrey Grider

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A US-based Turkish cleric accused of plotting a coup to overthrow the Ankara government has claimed President Recep Erdogan staged the rebellion himself to justify a major clampdown on opposition forces.

Fethullah Gulen, who was a former key ally of Erdogan has been blamed by the politician of using his contacts to develop a ‘parallel structure’ to overthrow the state. Erdogan has called on US President Barack Obama to extradite Gulen, who is based in Pennsylvania.

In response to the attempted rebellion, Turkish authorities have detained 2,745 judges and prosecutors whose loyalty to the regime has been questioned. Also, some 2,839 soldiers – including the head of the Third Army Corps in Istanbul, General Erdal Ozturk – have been arrested.

PM Binali Yildrim described the plot, which claimed the lives of 161 civilians with 1,440 wounded, as a ‘black stain on Turkish democracy’.

Parliament Speaker Ismail Kahraman unexpectedly sparked controversy in Turkey when on April 25 he declared that Turkey’s new constitution should forgo mention of “secularism” and instead be a “religious constitution” referencing God. His words reignited Turkey’s always tense “secularism debate,” which has been amplified since 2002 when the Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power. Kahraman’s remarks led to protests in a number of cities, a call by the main opposition leader for him to resign and allegations by secular pundits that the Speaker had shown the AKP’s “true face,” its “real intentions.” Because Kahraman is a known confidant of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, many also suspected that his statement was part of a scheme being orchestrated by Turkey’s leader.

In the next two days, however, the major figures in the AKP disowned Kahraman’s position on a “religious constitution.” The AKP’s Mustafa Sentop, chairman of parliament’s constitutional commission, said that Kahraman’s view was not a “party stance” and that “secularism is preserved in our constitutional draft.” Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu asserted, “In the new constitution that we are preparing, the principle of secularism will be included.” He added that it would be a “liberal interpretation” of secularism, not an “authoritarian” version. In also addressing the controversy, Erdogan not only professed support for secularism, but even offered an inspired defense of the principle.

Defining secularism as the state’s “obligation to stay at an equal distance to different faith groups,” he explained why it is a good idea: “If the faith of all religious groups in this country is guaranteed in the constitution, and the state’s equal distance to all religious groups is a foundation, why do you need to emphasize Islam? If I can live my faith as a Muslim the way I want to, the issue is over. If a Christian can live his/her Christianity, if a Jew can live his/her Jewishness or an atheist can live his/her atheism, the issue is also over for them.”

Will Erdogan’s powerful statement ease the tensions over secularism? Probably not, because many secularists fear that they have not yet seen the AKP’s “true face.”

A common view in opposition circles is that Kahraman’s statement on doing away with secularism and introducing a religious constitution did not reflect his “personal views,” as he claimed, but was in fact part of a plan cooked up by Erdogan. Accordingly, Erdogan wanted to test the waters by having Kahraman float the idea of a religious constitution, but then defended secularism after the reaction it elicited. An “Islamic state,” however, remains Erdogan’s long-term goal in their thinking. Another, more persuasive interpretation of events would be as follows.

Erdogan’s ambitions are more about power than doctrine. For power, he needs to sustain popular support, and for popular support, he needs to use religion, but only to a certain extent. While religious symbolism has broad appeal in Turkey, a Quran-thumping Islamic state does not. Various polls bear this out. The most recent survey of the political inclinations of Turkish society was conducted in 2013 by the Pew Research Center, which found that only 12% of all Turks support “making Sharia the official law in their country.” In contrast, 84% of Pakistanis and 74% of Egyptians supported the idea.

Erdogan likely has the support of this hardcore, Islamist minority of 12%, who probably do expect him to create their utopia. At the same time, he also has the support of a much larger block of “conservative” voters who are religious and like reference to religion, but who still prefer to live under secular law. This is why Erdogan would want to retain secularism in the Turkish constitution, albeit while not shying from venerating religion in the public square or perhaps even in the constitution.

A journalist with access to the AKP recently wrote in an insider report that there is a chance that the new constitution will preserve secularism — “laiklik,” from the French “laïcité” — but the preamble might make reference to “Allah and the religion of Islam,” along with some historical figures such as Rumi and Atatürk — in other words, something for everybody. Another rumor is that the preamble will make reference to “the Creator,” a possible inspiration from the US Declaration of Independence.

The more likely future for Turkey is not a Sharia-imposing Islamic state, but a more conservative state re-designed in the image of the AKP. Keep in mind that the latter-day ideology of the party is not simply “Islamism” after all, but “Erdoganism,” in which Islamism is indeed an important theme, but not the only theme. This would not put Turkey on the path to becoming another Iran or Saudi Arabia, as Turkey’s secularists fear, but it could lead in the direction of another Russia, where a similar ideology, “Putinism,” rules.

As the journalist Fareed Zakaria astutely observed, Putinism consists of five fundamentals: religion, nationalism, social conservatism, state capitalism and government media control. “Returning to the values of religion” — in particular Orthodox Christianity — is a powerful theme in Putin’s agenda, with a global vision of “protecting persecuted Christians all over the world.” Replace “Christian” with “Muslim,” and one has Turkey’s ruling ideology. source

Related Topics:Erdogan Islamic State Turkey

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Headline News

Thanks To Your Prayers And Support, Good Child Missions In Uganda Now Has A Cow That Will Help Feed Hungry Children And Strengthen Their Ministry

Published

10 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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Operation Africa! Raises The Funds Necessary To Purchase A Cow For Good Child Missions In Uganda To Help Feed And Bless Needy Children God places in their care

The photo you see at the top of this article is Irad, with an enormous smile on his face, standing with the cow we helped him to purchase for Good Child Missions. Actualy, two cows because she’s pregnant, a double blessing! The cows are an intergal part of the self-sustaining farm Irad is constructing to provide a steady stream of food for the children God places in his care. NTEB has been a strong financial partner with Good Child Missions from their inception, and Lord willing, will remain so through our newly launched Operation Africa! now also operating in Kenya.

“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.“ James 1:27 (KJB)

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When you contribute to this fundraising effort, you are helping us to do what the Lord called us to do. The money you send in goes primarily to the overall daily operations of this site. When people ask for Bibles, we send them out at no charge. When people write in and say how much they would like gospel tracts but cannot afford them, we send them a box at no cost to them for either the tracts or the shipping, no matter where they are in the world. We have a Gospel Billboard program. We are now broadcasting Bible studies, Podcasts and a Sunday Service 5 times a week, thanks to your generous donations. All this is possible because YOU pray for us, YOU support us, and YOU give so we can continue growing.

But whatever you do, don’t do nothing. Time is short and we need your help right now. The Lord has given us an open door with a tremendous ‘course’ for us to fulfill that will create an excellent experience at the Judgement Seat of Christ. Please pray for our efforts, and if the Lord leads you to donate, be as generous as possible. The war is REAL, the battle HOT and the time is SHORT…TO THE FIGHT!!!

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Donald Trump

Donald Trump’s Iran ‘Victory Lap’ Ends With Him Ironically Ditching The New Muslim-Provided Air Force One From Qatar And Returning Home On The Old One

Published

1 day ago

July 8, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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President Donald Trump’s Middle East Theater Meets Reality As Iran Threats Send Him Back To The Old Air Force One For The Flight Home

Trump is selling strength, victory, dominance, and deterrence over Iran, yet the image coming out of this trip is not victory-lap confidence but nervous calculation. He says Iran has been beaten, decimated, obliterated, and put back in its box, but when the moment comes to fly through a dangerous threat environment, the Qatari-gifted luxury jet suddenly stays behind and the old, battle-tested Air Force One gets the call. That is political irony at 40,000 feet. The boast is “Iran is defeated,” but his actions say, “not defeated enough for me to trust this plane.” Reports say the switch raised questions precisely because Trump was also talking about Iranian threats and being at the top of their “kill list.”

“Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.” Proverbs 27:1 (KJB)

Trump bragged about the lavish $400 million plane gifted by Qatar, took his first flight on it, and praised it like a symbol of prestige and power. But Qatar is a Muslim Gulf state with its own entanglements, relationships, and strategic calculations in the region, and the moment Iran re-enters the picture, that glittering “gift” starts looking less like strength and more like vulnerability. The old Air Force One may be aging, but it represents hardened American continuity; the Qatari jet represents spectacle, luxury, controversy, and foreign influence. One is built for the presidency in crisis. The other looks tailor-made for Trump’s brand.

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Trump’s foreign policy is forever trapped between theater and reality. In the theater, Iran is crushed, America is feared, enemies are trembling, and Trump is the great wartime commander. In reality, Iran is still threatening, the Middle East is still burning, the ceasefire is being declared finished, and the president is making aircraft decisions that appear to reflect a genuine fear of exposure. He can call Tehran names, promise to hit them “hard,” and claim victory all day long, but if Iran is still shaping how the president travels, then Iran has not been removed from the chessboard.

Walking slow like a defeated man, President Trump gets back into the old Air Force One because he’s too afraid of Iranian missile attacks to fly in the jet that his Muslim friends in Qatar just gave him. Sad state of affairs. pic.twitter.com/DmXua9QzJF

— Now The End Begins (@NowTheEndBegins) July 8, 2026

So the old Air Force One becomes the perfect symbol of the moment. Trump wanted the new plane to say, “Look how powerful I am.” Instead, the switch back to the old one says, “Look how dangerous this has become.” He boasted about beating Iran, then appeared unwilling to put that boast to the test in the Muslim-provided luxury jet from Qatar. That is not just irony — that is the whole Trump Middle East doctrine in one image: loud claims of victory, foreign gifts wrapped in controversy, threats still coming from Iran, and America once again flying through the consequences of unfinished wars.

Now The End Begins is your front line defense against the rising tide of darkness in the last Days before the Rapture of the Church

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“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;” Titus 2:13 (KJB)

“Thank you very much!” – Geoffrey, editor-in-chief, NTEB

Donald Trump

THE PROPHECY NEWS PODCAST: As Trump Resumes Bombing Of Iran, Emmanuel Macron Takes Center Stage In Stunning Visit To Syria With Ahmed al-Sharaa

Published

2 days ago

July 8, 2026

Geoffrey Grider

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The Middle East is undergoing a paradigm shift realingment now with Emmanuel Macron center stage in Syria and Donald Trump restarting the bombing of Iran

The Middle East is shaking on every side right now, and the headlines are lining up like pieces on a prophetic chessboard. Trump is in Turkey, strengthening ties with Erdoğan and signaling that he may reverse the F-35 ban and lift sanctions tied to Turkey’s Russian S-400 purchase — even as Israel has reportedly warned that arming Turkey with F-35s could destabilize the regional balance of power. At the very same time, the U.S. has restarted strikes against Iranian targets after renewed attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, with CENTCOM calling Iran’s actions a violation of the ceasefire. Hey, Christian, if you’ve been waiting for the end times to start, you’re already late to the party.

“For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.” Matthew 24:7,8 (KJB)

On this episode of the Prophecy News Podcast, then comes Macron, the man we are watching closely as the possible, and probable, biblical man of sin, walking into Damascus like he owns the place to meet Syria’s new president Ahmed al-Sharaa, the former Abu Mohammad al-Jolani. During that visit, two IEDs exploded near the Four Seasons Hotel where Macron was staying, wounding at least 18 people, while Macron continued his meeting with al-Sharaa at the presidential palace. That is an astonishing visual. Western diplomacy blessing a rebranded jihadist regime, bombs rocking Damascus, Iran burning again, Turkey being courted, and Israel surrounded by shifting alliances. This is Middle East Turmoil in every sense of the phrase – war, diplomacy, betrayal, reinvention, and prophetic foreshadowing all colliding at once. The world calls it stabilization, reconstruction, NATO strategy, and regional diplomacy. Now, the world may be confused watching all of this unfold, but the student of prophecy knows what’s going on. The nations are moving, the alliances are shifting, Damascus is shaking, Iran is raging, Turkey is rising, and Europe is inserting itself into the heart of the Middle East. Welcome to Day 2,307 of 15 Days to Flatten The Curve, and Day 130 of World War Trump in Iran. It’s a great day for an end times Podcast, so let’s get after it…TO THE FIGHT!!!

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