{"id":143323,"date":"2026-08-10T18:31:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T18:31:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/143323\/"},"modified":"2026-08-10T18:31:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T18:31:12","slug":"cancer-patient-imprisoned-over-gulen-links-goes-5-months-without-treatment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/143323\/","title":{"rendered":"Cancer patient imprisoned over G\u00fclen links goes 5 months without treatment"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A cancer patient imprisoned over alleged links to the faith-based G\u00fclen movement has gone five months without treatment, while delays in a medical assessment have held up the process required for the suspension of his sentence on grounds of health, the TR724 news website reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u0130brahim Halil Al, who is being held in Edirne Prison, is awaiting an additional PET scan to assess his condition and determine whether the cancer has progressed.<\/p>\n

His wife said the medical board process has been stalled because the hospital has yet to issue the report from a medical scan conducted as part of his assessment, preventing the completion of the medical board report needed for the suspension of his sentence on health grounds.<\/p>\n

The case was brought to public attention by pro-Kurdish Peoples\u2019 Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) lawmaker and human rights advocate \u00d6mer Faruk Gergerlio\u011flu, who has frequently raised the cases of seriously ill prisoners in Turkey.<\/p>\n

T\u00fcrkiye’nin son 10 y\u0131l\u0131n\u0131 \u00f6zetleyen bir foto\u011fraf!<\/p>\n

\u0130\u015fte mazlum \u00e7ocuklar bu 10 y\u0131l\u0131 b\u00f6yle ya\u015fad\u0131!<\/p>\n

Aile Urfa’da, baba kanser hastas\u0131 \u0130brahim Halil Al, Edirne Cezaevi’nde. 27 saat yollarda peri\u015fan oluyor bu aile. Sa\u011fl\u0131k kuruluna aylard\u0131r giremeyen baba ve yollarda peri\u015fan olan bir\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/8c8qo0bZsx<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 \u00d6mer Faruk Gergerlio\u011flu (@gergerliogluof) August 9, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Al, who is serving a sentence of more than eight years, underwent surgery for soft-tissue cancer at Dicle University Hospital about a year and a half ago and subsequently had three PET scans to monitor his condition. His sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeals after the second scan, and he was jailed on March 19, 2026.<\/p>\n

Working primarily in the construction sector, Al was convicted of membership in a terrorist organization, reportedly based on his employment 17 years earlier at institutions in Osmaniye province that were later closed down over their alleged affiliation with the G\u00fclen movement as well as his participation in religious gatherings and the collection of donations.<\/p>\n

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo\u011fan has targeted the G\u00fclen movement, a worldwide civic initiative inspired by the ideas of Muslim cleric Fethullah G\u00fclen, who died in 2024, since corruption investigations in December 2013 implicated Erdo\u011fan as well as some members of his family and inner circle. He dismissed the probes as a G\u00fclenist conspiracy and designated the movement as a terrorist organization in May 2016, intensifying a sweeping crackdown after a coup attempt in July of the same year that he accused G\u00fclen of orchestrating. The movement denies involvement in the attempted coup or any terrorist activity.<\/p>\n

Al is imprisoned in Edirne in northwestern Turkey, while his wife and children live in the southeastern province of \u015eanl\u0131urfa. His wife, Bahar Al, said four requests to transfer him to a prison closer to his family had been rejected, forcing them to make a journey of about 27 hours to visit him.<\/p>\n

His wife was also sentenced to more than six years in prison over alleged links to the movement. She spent a total of eight months behind bars before the Supreme Court of Appeals overturned her conviction. She was released on April 24 pending retrial, with a final hearing scheduled for October 15.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The couple have four children, who Bahar said have been deeply affected by their parents\u2019 imprisonment. She said the children developed psychological problems during the periods of separation, with some receiving professional support.<\/p>\n

Following the coup attempt of July 15, 2016, the Turkish government declared a state of emergency that remained in effect until July 19, 2018. During this period, the government carried out a purge of state institutions under the pretext of an anti-coup fight by issuing a number of government decrees. More than 113,000 civil servants and 4,362 judges and prosecutors were\u00a0dismissed<\/a>\u00a0over alleged links to terrorist organizations, while more than 26,000 members of the armed forces were expelled from the military for alleged membership in or relationships with \u201cterrorist organizations\u201d by emergency decree-laws subject to neither judicial nor parliamentary scrutiny.<\/p>\n

According to the latest figures from the justice ministry, more than 127,000 people have been\u00a0convicted<\/a>\u00a0of alleged links to the movement since 2016, with 10,485 still in prison and legal proceedings ongoing against 83,404 individuals.<\/p>\n