Trump Vows to Secure American Pastor's Release From Turkish Prison, Lawyer Says
President Trump has vowed to work towards the release of an American pastor who has been languishing in a Turkish prison on trumped-up terrorism charges since Oct. 7, 2016.
Trump's assurance provides a glimmer of hope for the family of Rev. Andrew C. Brunson, 48, who has been in detention for seven months now even without a formal indictment filed against him, Jay Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) told Fox News.
Sekulow met with both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence at the White House on Thursday.
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"The president and vice president have taken a personal interest in resolving this," Sekulow said. "They are fully engaged. The vice president has told me that he has been in talks with officials in Turkey."
Sekulow said he brought up Brunson's case with the president, urging him to bring up the matter in his planned meeting this week with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
"I have full confidence that this matter will be successfully resolved in short order," the ACLJ Chief Counsel said.
ACLJ and Brunson's family maintain that the pastor is innocent of the accusations made against him and is being held for his Christian faith.
Brunson, who had been serving as pastor of a Protestant church in Turkey for 23 years, was detained along with his wife, Norine, last October. His wife was released 12 days later.
In December, Brunson was moved to a prison after he was accused of supporting terrorism.
Last month, ACLJ said Brunson provided the U.S. Embassy in Turkey with a statement which he hopes will reach Trump, according to CBN News.
"Will the Turkish government face no consequence for stubbornly continuing to hold an American citizen as a political prisoner," Brunson wrote. "Even though I have a long public track record as a church pastor, they falsely accuse me of being a member of an Islamist terrorist group."
He said the Turkish government "is treating the U.S. government with contempt" since it has rejected numerous attempts by Washington to secure his release and return him to the U.S., without presenting proof of the terrorism charges leveled against him.
"I plead with my government – with the Trump administration – to fight for me," Brunson said. "I ask the State Department to impose sanctions. I appeal to President Trump: please help me. Let the Turkish government know that you will not cooperate with them in any way until they release me. Please do not leave me here in prison."
In February, ACLJ Senior Counsel CeCe Heil told The Christian Post that Turkey refuses to provide any evidence for its charges against Brunson, and noted that the pastor's case has been sealed.
"Really, the only thing we can point to is the attempted coup last July and President Erdogan's need to gather up anyone who he might potentially consider to be a threat. Other than that, there is nothing," Heil told CP. "They have provided no evidence."
