ANKARA, Turkey (AP) - A Muslim preacher and U.S. citizen went on trial Friday in Turkey, denying charges that he violated strict laws on religion and established an illegal religious congregation.
Aydogan Fuat was arrested June 28 after a meeting of his followers at an apartment in the Aegean port of Izmir. He has been held in jail since his arrest and is to remain there until his trial resumes Sept. 10, his lawyer said.
``I am just chatting with these people, I am warning them against drugs and alcohol,'' Fuat, who leads an Islamic group with several hundred followers in New York, told the court in Izmir. ``Those who love me because of my words convert to Islam.''
Fuat, 44, faces six months in prison if found guilty of establishing an illegal religious congregation. In Turkey, only state-appointed clergymen can lead people in Islamic prayers.
Fuat, known by his followers as Sheik Abdul Kerim Fuat, is also accused of wearing an Islamic turban - clerical clothing that only religious leaders on the government payroll are allowed to wear.
Fuat's lawyer, Azra Inmeler, claimed that her client had no intentions of establishing a religious group here and that as a foreigner he did not know that wearing a turban and cloak were banned in Turkey. The judge said foreigners in Turkey are subject to its laws and that Fuat's acts posed a threat to the secular regime.
The 24 alleged followers who were detained during the meeting also face six months in prison if convicted of being members of the group. They included another U.S. citizen from New York, Meryem Brawley, who introduced herself to the court as Fuat's religious wife.
The court adjourned the trial to September 10 because authorities had requested Fuat's police records from the United States. Fuat is a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in Cyprus.
AP-NY-08-10-01 2342EDT
Copyright 2001 The Associated Press.