Turkish authorities have detained seven people with alleged ties to the faith-based Gülen movement while attempting to flee to neighboring Greece, the pro-government Daily Sabah reported on Thursday.
The detainees were apprehended by troops on patrol in the border areas of northwestern Edirne province, according to the report.
The police also detained five other suspected Gülen followers across the country, the report said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement, inspired by Turkish Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen, since the corruption investigations of December 17-25, 2013, which implicated then-prime minister Erdoğan, his family members and his inner circle.
Dismissing the investigations as a Gülenist coup and conspiracy against his government, Erdoğan designated the movement as a terrorist organization and began to target its members. He intensified the crackdown on the movement following an abortive putsch in 2016 that he accused Gülen of masterminding. Gülen and the movement strongly deny involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
In addition to the thousands who were jailed, scores of other Gülen movement followers had to flee Turkey to avoid the government crackdown.
