Turkish deputy PM praises anti-FETO op in Kosovo

By Sinan Balcikoca and Mirac Kaya

BURSA, Turkey (AA) - Deputy Prime Minister Hakan Cavusoglu said Monday that Ankara had done Prisitina a favor by taking in Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) members apprehended in Kosovo.

In cooperation with Kosovo intelligence, Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) Thursday apprehended the six men, who were said to be in charge of getting FETO members out of Turkey to go to Europe and the U.S., alongside their activities in the Balkans.

The group, brought back to Turkey by a private plane, is made up of Cihan Ozkan, Kahraman Demirez, Hasan Huseyin Gunakan, Mustafa Erdem, Osman Karakaya, and Yusuf Karabina, all wanted in Turkey as FETO fugitives.

Once in Turkey, the suspects were handed over to the judiciary.

Responding to journalists' questions in an event in western Bursa, Cavusoglu said: "The situation which emerged in Kosovo is a great favor Turkey has done to Kosovo for its security and future."

Cavusoglu said Kosovar prime minister and other authorities should see this development from that point of view.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 in Turkey, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.