Turkish PM Seeks Extradition of Islamic Cleric

Turkey's prime minister plans to ask the United States to extradite an Islamic cleric he accuses of trying to bring down the government.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his former ally, Fethullah Gülen, and his followers, have used illegal wire taps and social media to try to topple his government.

The 73-year-old imam, granted permanent residence in the United States, has been living at an Islamic retreat center in rural Pennsylvania since the late 1990s.

In a weekend interview with PBS talk show host Charlie Rose, Erdogan accused Gülen's followers of leaking wiretapped phone calls before elections last March that hinted at widespread government corruption. He also said Gülen poses a threat to U.S. security.

"These elements that threaten the national security of Turkey cannot be allowed to exist in other countries because what they do to us here, they might do against their host," he said.

Meanwhile, Erdogan himself has been accused of an increasingly authoritarian style of governing.

CBN's Erick Stakelbeck has reported both on Gülen's worldwide movement and on Erdogan's attempts to transform Turkey into an Islamist state.