A German has been convicted in Turkey of terror charges for several years imprisonment, reports the research network of WDR, NDR and "Süddeutsche Zeitung". The court found it proven that the woman had committed a criminal offense because of her connections to the Gülen movement. The 51-year-old was sentenced to six years and three months in prison.
The woman, the ARD broadcasters report, have Turkish roots, but have only German citizenship. She moved to Turkey in 2013 after living in southwestern Germany for about 20 years.
Among other things, she was alleged to have organized a group of women associated with the movement of the Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen. In addition, she is said to have attended a meeting of the Gülen movement. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames his US exile archenemy for the coup attempt in July 2016.
"The Foreign Office is aware of the case, we watch it closely," it said on Saturday from the Foreign Ministry in Berlin. Further information did not make the Ministry with reference to the protection of the personality rights. However, it is known that representatives of the Federal Government had already campaigned for the release of the woman in 2017.
The 51-year-old, who has been living in Turkey since 2013, was the first German to have been arrested after the failed coup some three years ago. Just two weeks after her arrest, she was released. However, she was denied an exit ban. In 2017, the trial against the German began, in which she was found guilty at the end of 2018. The verdict has now been confirmed in the next instance.
According to information from the Foreign Office, there are currently 56 German citizens in Turkish custody. Another 37 are at large, but should not leave the country.