Albanian court approves decision to close FETO-linked college

By Fatjon Cuka

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - An Albanian court on Friday ruled in favor of a decision to close a school with links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind a 2016 attempted coup in Türkiye.

Sources from the court in the capital Tirana told Anadolu Agency that the cancellation of the previous decision to close the school, the Mehmet Akif Ersoy College, had been dropped.

Known for its closeness to FETO, the Gulistan Foundation had demanded that the decision to close the college be dropped.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, in which 251 people were killed and 2,734 wounded.

Ankara 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.

- Closing decisions

The Albanian Council of Ministers on Sept. 22 decided to close Mehmet Akif Ersoy College, affiliated with the Gulistan Foundation.

On the same day, authorities in the Balkan country also stopped the work of the Zubeyde Hanim private kindergarten in Tirana, affiliated with the FETO-linked Turgut Ozal Education company.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced that the college was closed because it "doesn't meet legally required standards."