White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said the US would impose sanctions to Turkish ministers for not releasing American Pastor Andrew Craig Brunson, who faces terrorism charges in Turkey.
Sanders targeted both Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu and Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul in her speech.
TURKISH COUNTERATTACK: FETO IS OUR PROPERTY
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu reacted to US move to impose sanctions and Sarah Sander’s speech in a Twitter post on Thursday.
The minister Soylu said “We have a property in America: FETO. We will not leave it there. We will get it,” on his official Twitter account.
FETO’S ALLY: PASTOR BRUNSON
Brunson has been charged with spying for the PKK — a designated terrorist group in the US and Turkey — and US-based Fetullah Gulen and the Fetullah Terrorist Organization, the group behind the defeated July 2016 coup attempt in Turkey which martyred 251 people and injured thousands.
Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.