İstanbul police detained Adnan Oktar (62), a controversial televangelist Muslim figure known abroad as “Harun Yahya” over the works on his anti-evolution theory, early Wednesday. Police also launched an operation to arrest 235 people, who are suspected to have links with his “gang,” according to a report by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency.
Oktar, who is well-known supporter of anti-democratic policies of Turkey’s Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been reportedly placed in the wanted list issued by Combating Financial Crimes department of the İstanbul Police Department.
The cult-like group led by Oktar has been accused of several crimes including; establishing an organization with felon intent, child sexual abuse, sexual intercourse with a minor, kidnapping, retaining a minor, violating tax procedure law, and violating anti-terror law.
The operation is being carried out across five province, with many suspects nabbed. Adnan Oktar and his group have faced similar allegations in the past.
In his first remarks, Oktar claimed that the detentions are a “play of British deep state,” a conspiracy theory often used by Oktar to explain events around the world.
Most recently, a Turkish man living in Austria had accused Oktar of brainwashing his daughters into submission. Elvan Koçak, who divorced his wife years ago for her devotion to Oktar, told a Turkish TV station that his two teenage daughters were brainwashed by Oktar, according to Turkey’s pro-Erdoğan media.
Oktar, who first made headlines in the 1980s when he was arrested for promoting theocracy, was charged with blackmailing and was arrested in September 1999, but the charges were dismissed after a two-year-long trial after the court found him mentally ill. He spent 10 months in a psychiatric hospital and, after his release, he kept a relatively low profile.
Oktar surrounds himself with young women and good-looking men during his programs where he delves into everything from evolution theory to the “British deep state” on his A9 TV. He affectionately calls the young women on his show “kittens.” His critics claim that he brainwashes young women and men from wealthy families into joining his cult, a claim he had repeatedly denied.
Oktar, owns a TV channel called “A9″, where he runs a show discussing religious and social issues, while surrounding himself with surgically enhanced women, who he refers to as his “kittens”.
The objectification of women in his shows often comes under heavy criticism from women’s rights groups and both conservative and secular segments of Turkish society. His show was previously fined by the country’s broadcasting watchdog Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK).
Oktar established a foundation in 1995 and started publishing books on creationism. He became a household name after he launched a TV station in 2011 where his bizarre TV shows stirred up controversy and made him a favorite topic of internet memes.
Bordering on obscenity, as scantily-clad dancers perform in between Oktar’s speeches peppered with religious references, his shows often receive complaints at the country’s TV watchdog.
The post Pro-Erdoğan televangelist Adnan Oktar detained by Turkish police appeared first on Stockholm Center for Freedom.
from Stockholm Center for Freedom https://stockholmcf.org/pro-erdogan-televangelist-adnan-oktar-detained-by-turkish-police/
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