‘Turkey did not ask KRG to close Gulen-linked schools’

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – A Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) official said on Sunday that the Ministry of Education would take over the Gulen-linked schools in the Kurdistan Region.

Safeen Dizayee, the KRG spokesperson, revealed in an interview with Kurdistan24 that the Gulen-linked movement schools would be administrated by the KRG Ministry of Education.

Dizayee stated that the schools would continue to function and would not be closed.

However, the spokesperson said there would be a new system for these schools, and the schools would be administrated by new staff members.

Dizayee assured that the rights of students are important and would be taken into consideration and that the Ministry of Education had begun talks on the matter.

“The future of the students is guaranteed because they are our students, and there is no need for worries,” he said.  

“13,000 students are studying in Gulen-linked schools across the Kurdistan Region, and there is a possibility that these schools are transferred to the private sector,” Dizayee added.

Following the failed coup attempt in Turkey, which the AKP-led Turkish government accused US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen of plotting, Turkey asked many countries to close their Gulen-linked schools.

According to the KRG spokesperson, Turkey had not officially requested the KRG to close their Gulen-linked schools, but they did not hide their worries on the matter.

On July 15, an unidentified faction of the Turkish military plotted a coup in an attempt to topple the current government of Turkey.

After the failed coup, Turkey’s Prime Minister and President accused Gulen, who is now based in Pennsylvania, and asked the US government to extradite him.

There are 20 Gulen-linked schools and one university in the Kurdistan Region where 13,000 students are enrolled.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany