A Turkish businessman who was jailed due to his alleged links to the Gülen movement was attacked in Menemen Prison in İzmir, according to a Turkish journalist living in exile.
The TR724 news website reported that businessman Hazım Sesli was attacked by another inmate with sharp objects during a phone call to his family.
He was taken to the prison infirmary immediately after the incident, journalist Adem Yavuz Arslan said, adding that his health condition was not serious.
A Turkish court arrested Sesli on Oct. 15, 2015, before a failed coup in 2016, for which the government blames the Gülen movement, despite its strong denial of any involvement.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his ruling party also accused the movement of attempting to overthrow the government with a 2013 graft probe into Erdoğan’s close circle.
Sesli, 54, the founder of a prominent textile company in Turkey’s Uşak province, was in 2019 sentenced to 15 years in prison on charges of “terrorism.”
His company was seized by the Turkish government after the abortive military putsch.
Eight hundred eighty-five private companies have been transferred to Turkey’s Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) since the coup attempt due to their alleged affiliation with the Gülen movement, according to the Dünya news website.