Iraq's Kurdish govt declines to shut FETO-linked schools

By Idris Okuducu

ERBIL, Iraq (AA) - Northern Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) said Wednesday that it would not close 20 schools affiliated with the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) led by U.S.-based preacher Fetullah Gulen.

In a statement, the KRG’s Education Ministry denied earlier media reports that it planned to close the FETO-linked "Isik" (light) schools, which provide education to almost 13,000 students in the Kurdish region.

The ministry stressed that the KRG had not instructed it to close the schools in question.

"The general benefit of the students is valued above everything else," it asserted, adding that the schools’ doors would remain open until a further notice.

FETO has several educational institutions in the Kurdish region -- including some in the cities of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Dohuk and Halabja -- while FETO’s Devran FM radio station broadcasts from Erbil.

The terrorist organization is believed to have orchestrated a July 15 coup attempt in Turkey, which left 238 martyrs in its wake and 2,200 others injured.

Gulen has long been accused of infiltrating Turkish state institutions -- especially the military, police apparatus and judiciary -- with the aim of creating a "parallel state".