Release pastor or face tough sanctions: US to Turkey
Washington, July 27 : US Vice President Mike Pence said on Thursday that his country will slap "significant economic sanctions" on Turkey unless it immediately releases a detained US pastor.
Pence said Turkey should take immediate action to free Andrew Brunson or "be prepared to face the consequences", Xinhua reported. US President Donald Trump also tweeted earlier that Ankara should release Brunson, calling the cleric's detention "a total disgrace".
The 50-year-old pastor, who was detained two years ago on spying charges, faces up to 35 years in prison if found guilty.
A Turkish court on Wednesday decided to move him from prison to house arrest under judicial control due to his health problems. However, he was not allowed to leave the country.
Turkish authorities accuse him of espionage and having links to the network led by US-based outlawed cleric Fethullah Gulen and the Kurdistan Workers' Party.
Ankara accuses Gulen and his network of being behind the failed coup against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government in 2016, an accusation that Gulen has denied.
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Fan tries to die by suicide over Nikhil Kumaraswamy's bypoll loss
Bengaluru: Channapatna JD(S) candidate Nikhil Kumaraswamy, who lost the byelection to C.P. Yogeshwar of Congress, on Sunday consoled a fan who reportedly attempted to end his life and requested him not to repeat such acts.
Manjunath, fondly called Abhi, had even penned a letter before taking the dangerous step. Nikhil, who called on Manjunath at the latter’s home in Kudloor in Channapatna, expressed shock and sadness over the incident.
Nikhil Kumaraswamy reassured Manjunath, expressing his support during the difficult time. He told him that he was deeply troubled to learn of this incident and emphasised that he would stand by him. Nikhil also promised to offer assistance in any way he could, including helping him secure employment opportunities in the future, as reported by the Deccan Herald.
He also reminded Manjunath of the importance of his children’s well-being, urging him to focus on their future. “Please, look at the faces of your growing children. Even I have a three-year-old son. The children are young, let us take care of their future also. I will arrange some job opportunities for you. I might not be an MLA but this is a challenge. I will get you employed,” he said.
Nikhil told media persons that he is extremely hurt more by Manjunath’s attempt to die than by his loss in the election. “At 7:30 a.m., we got a message that in Valetoopu, Manjunath had consumed poison yesterday. In Channapatna, our workers and leaders have built this party with zeal. Let the admiration be there in your hearts but if it crosses the line, your families get hurt and we get very pained by it,” he was quoted as saying by the publication.
Speaking of his byelection loss, Nikhil reiterated that the JD(S) had got its traditional votes, but that the votes of a particular community went against the party.
“Deve Gowda gave reservation to a community. We tried our last attempt to take that community into confidence. But they conveyed to us that they do not require us. In future, we will take other communities into confidence,” he remarked in a veiled reference to Muslims.
Nikhil lost the election by a margin of 25,413 votes to Congress candidate C.P. Yogeshwar.
