After nearly two years in a Turkish
prison, hopes for the release of American
pastor Andrew Brunson have been
deferred. A Turkish court ordered 50-
year-old pastor to remain bars until at
least his next hearing on October 12.
On Wednesday, the court heard testimony
from members of Brunson’s church who
made “vague, unsubstantiated
accusations” against Brunson, reported
World Watch Monitor. When the judge
asked how Brunson would respond to the
testimony of the prosecution’s witnesses,
he said, “My faith teaches me to forgive,
so I forgive those who testified against
me.”
Bill Campbell, a North Carolina pastor
whose church belongs to the Evangelical
Presbyterian Church, the same
denomination as Brunson’s church, was
among several supporters of the pastor
who attended the trial.
“As usual, there was much spurious
testimony against Andrew,” Campbell told
EPConnection after the trial. “Andrew’s
testimony was absolutely powerful. He
presented the gospel with confidence and
defended himself with boldness.”
Notably, the court heard a defense
witness for the first time, although the
witness Brunson initially requested to
testify was not permitted to do so.
Many of Brunson’s supporters had been
cautiously optimistic about his release—
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
and US President Donald Trump had been
photographed smiling and fist -bumping
each other at last week’s NATO summit in
Brussels. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) had also met
with Erdoğan in Ankara the last week of
June, though the focus of the meeting was
to discuss US sanctions.
On Twitter, Freedom House’s Nate
Schenkkan called the Turkish court’s
decision a “cruel, political decision, just
like his imprisonment.”
“Case study in the absurdity of the
present Turkish justice system,” tweeted
the author of several books about
freedom in Turkey. “Brunson is charged
with being part of a conspiracy of
evangelicals, Mormons, & Jehovah's
Witnesses embedded among American
service personnel in Turkey who
conspired to divide the Turkish state on
behalf of the PKK and Gulen movement.
It would be a farce if it weren't so
serious.”
“Keeping him in prison is a political
decision,” he continued. “… Letting him
out would have been a simple, cost-free
way for the Turkish government to show
it was concerned about the relationship
with the United States. Holding him for at
least 3 more months is a new low.”
Brunson’s imprisonment has attracted
worldwide attention and prompted a
massive advocacy campaign, state visits,
and hundreds of thousands of petition
signatures.
A Presbyterian preacher from North
Carolina, Brunson ministered in the
Muslim-majority nation straddling the
border of Europe and the Middle East for
more than 20 years. Then in October
2016, shortly after a failed coup in
Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey’s capital, he
was detained during a wave of
imprisonments and dismissals purging
approximately 150,000 officials, judges,
teachers, and military personnel.
prison, hopes for the release of American
pastor Andrew Brunson have been
deferred. A Turkish court ordered 50-
year-old pastor to remain bars until at
least his next hearing on October 12.
On Wednesday, the court heard testimony
from members of Brunson’s church who
made “vague, unsubstantiated
accusations” against Brunson, reported
World Watch Monitor. When the judge
asked how Brunson would respond to the
testimony of the prosecution’s witnesses,
he said, “My faith teaches me to forgive,
so I forgive those who testified against
me.”
Bill Campbell, a North Carolina pastor
whose church belongs to the Evangelical
Presbyterian Church, the same
denomination as Brunson’s church, was
among several supporters of the pastor
who attended the trial.
“As usual, there was much spurious
testimony against Andrew,” Campbell told
EPConnection after the trial. “Andrew’s
testimony was absolutely powerful. He
presented the gospel with confidence and
defended himself with boldness.”
Notably, the court heard a defense
witness for the first time, although the
witness Brunson initially requested to
testify was not permitted to do so.
Many of Brunson’s supporters had been
cautiously optimistic about his release—
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
and US President Donald Trump had been
photographed smiling and fist -bumping
each other at last week’s NATO summit in
Brussels. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) had also met
with Erdoğan in Ankara the last week of
June, though the focus of the meeting was
to discuss US sanctions.
On Twitter, Freedom House’s Nate
Schenkkan called the Turkish court’s
decision a “cruel, political decision, just
like his imprisonment.”
“Case study in the absurdity of the
present Turkish justice system,” tweeted
the author of several books about
freedom in Turkey. “Brunson is charged
with being part of a conspiracy of
evangelicals, Mormons, & Jehovah's
Witnesses embedded among American
service personnel in Turkey who
conspired to divide the Turkish state on
behalf of the PKK and Gulen movement.
It would be a farce if it weren't so
serious.”
“Keeping him in prison is a political
decision,” he continued. “… Letting him
out would have been a simple, cost-free
way for the Turkish government to show
it was concerned about the relationship
with the United States. Holding him for at
least 3 more months is a new low.”
Brunson’s imprisonment has attracted
worldwide attention and prompted a
massive advocacy campaign, state visits,
and hundreds of thousands of petition
signatures.
A Presbyterian preacher from North
Carolina, Brunson ministered in the
Muslim-majority nation straddling the
border of Europe and the Middle East for
more than 20 years. Then in October
2016, shortly after a failed coup in
Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey’s capital, he
was detained during a wave of
imprisonments and dismissals purging
approximately 150,000 officials, judges,
teachers, and military personnel.
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