Sudan authority denies FETO claim on Saudi clerics

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AA) – A top Sudanese security source on Sunday denied reports that eight Saudi opposition clerics had been deported to the Horn of Africa nation.

An Arabic media organ linked to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) -- the group behind last year's defeated coup in Turkey -- had reported that Saudi Arabia and Sudan agreed on the deportation, citing Lt. Gen. Mohamed Atta Al-Moula Abbas, the head of Sudan’s National Security and Intelligence Services, as a reported source.

The report claimed that eight Saudi clerics who oppose the royal family were deported to Sudan under an agreement.

The report “is more based on imagination than knowledge,” a top Sudanese security source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media, told Anadolu Agency.

The source stated that they do not have any agreement or cooperation with Saudi Arabia regarding members of the opposition.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 in Turkey which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

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.