Gulen denies involvement and Washington says Ankara must provide genuine evidence before it would hand him over.
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“A lot of people have been arrested and arrested very quickly”, Kerry told journalists.
“The level of vigilance and scrutiny is obviously going to be significant. hopefully we can work in a constructive way that prevents any backsliding”, Kerry added.
Brussels is trying to finalise a deal struck in March to reward Ankara for preventing migrants from crossing to Greece by channelling up to 6 billion euros ($6.6 billion) in aid to the 2.7 million Syrian refugees in Turkey, reviving European Union accession talks and scrapping visas for Turks wishing to visit Europe.
However, they were stopped as people flooded onto the streets in support of the leader, who was democratically elected.
European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini also called on Ankara to avoid steps that would damage the constitutional order.
United Nations human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said such a move would be “a big step in the wrong direction” and violate Turkey’s responsibilities under global law.
Mogherini spoke Monday at a joint news conference with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, after Kerry met the bloc’s 28 foreign ministers.
Turkey launched fresh raids Monday in a relentless crackdown against suspects behind a coup bid that left over 300 people dead, as its Western allies warned against any move to reinstate the death penalty.
“God willing, first we will build historically appropriate barracks at Taksim, whether they like it or not”, Erdogan told supporters gathered outside his Istanbul home overnight to show their defiance after a faction of the military attempted to overthrow him on July 15. He called Turkey a “valued North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally”, and offered his condolences to the families of the innocent people who lost their lives in the takeover attempt.
Erdogan has long accused Gulen of trying to create a “parallel state” within the courts, police, armed forces and media.
In his statement to prosecutors, Ozturk denied he was the coup ringleader. Erdogan has labeled the mild-mannered cleric a terrorist and calls Gulen and his supporters the Fethullah Gulen Terror Organization.
Gulen said in an interview with several media outlets including AFP at his compound in the Pennsylvania that he has “no concerns personally” about the extradition request.
As a result, a coup would have had massive repercussions in the region as the security of neighboring countries is closely tied to Turkey’s. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government rules.
The government announced that it had suspended 1,500 employees of the Finance Ministry and canceled all leave for government employees.
“Most of Gulen followers had already been purged from bureaucracy, judiciary and particularly from security apparatus”, he said, suggesting the government was using the revolt as an excuse to eliminate all other sources of dissent and opposition. Prosecutors also started questioning 27 generals. Gen.
Also Monday, Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told reporters that Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and the USA military were taken off-guard by the coup attempt.
As he stated over the weekend, Kerry said the United States would consider a formal request but that it must meet USA legal standards.
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He led a group which included the president’s own top military adviser, the commander of the main air base used by U.S. troops to launch air strikes against Isis (Islamic State) in Syria, and the commander of the powerful Second Army. The U.S. was again allowed to fly from Incirlik on Sunday, but commercial power to the base remained cut.
