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Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, seen speaking at his compound in Saylorsburg, Pa. on Sunday, has denied being involved in the attempted coup by elements of the Turkish military.Chris Post/The Associated Press

Just hours after Turkey's government regained control following a failed coup attempt, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed throngs of supporters in Istanbul and issued a stark demand: Hand over the culprit.

Mr. Erdogan accused Fethullah Gulen, a charismatic and reclusive Islamic cleric, of orchestrating the coup. For nearly two decades, Mr. Gulen has lived in exile in the United States. Once a close ally of Mr. Erdogan's, in recent years Mr. Gulen has become his bitter adversary.

"Either arrest Fethullah Gulen or return him to Turkey," said Mr. Erdogan on Saturday. He called on the U.S. to "do what is necessary" to prove its partnership with Turkey.

A splinter group within Turkey's military appears to have carried out the coup and the motivations behind its actions remain unclear.

However, Mr. Erdogan and other government officials moved swiftly to blame Mr. Gulen and his followers for the night of violence that shocked the nation.

By pointing the finger at Mr. Gulen, Mr. Erdogan is turning the coup into the latest and bloodiest chapter in the ongoing conflict between the two men. Tensions between the U.S. and Turkey are certain to rise as Ankara presses its allegation that Mr. Gulen is a criminal guilty of treason.

Mr. Gulen, 75, lives in Saylorsburg, Pa. On Saturday, he granted a rare interview to reporters in which he denied any involvement in the coup and condemned it as an attack on democracy. "My message to the Turkish people is never to view any military involvement positively," he said in a video released by Reuters.

Just who is Mr. Gulen and is it possible that he is influential enough to play a major role in the political affairs of a country of almost 80 million people?

Born near Erzurum in eastern Turkey, he delivered his first sermon at the age of 14. From the outset, Mr. Gulen set his eyes on worldly goals: to play a significant role in the future of the Turkish Republic. From the 1960s onward, masses of people would gather to listen to his moderate sermons in the country's mosques.

Mr. Gulen's movement – which calls itself Hizmet, or public service – preaches a message of tolerance and worldly success. By some estimates, he has more than four million followers in Turkey, some of them holding senior positions in the government and law enforcement.

Mr. Gulen became not only a religious leader but also a powerful and shrewd businessman with an empire focused on education. The network of charter schools affiliated with his movement began in Turkey and spread to Asia, Africa and the U.S., including 33 in Texas alone. It is estimated by some reports that his business interests are worth $30-billion (U.S.).

During Mr. Erdogan's rise to power and much of his time leading Turkey, Mr. Gulen was a powerful ally. Then, three years ago, Mr. Erdogan abruptly shut down the lucrative pre-university schools run by the Gulen movement.

Months later, Turkish prosecutors launched a massive corruption investigation that implicated Mr. Erdogan and his son in the embezzlement of tens of millions of dollars.

Mr. Erdogan blamed Mr. Gulen and his followers for the inquiry. He quashed the probe by firing scores of police officers, prosecutors and judges.

Since then, the conflict between Mr. Erdogan and Mr. Gulen has been unrelenting. Some government officials have called Mr. Gulen a terrorist and a traitor, while deeming his movement a "virus" and a "parallel state."

Mr. Erdogan has grown increasingly authoritarian, lashing out at anyone he deems a threat.

In March, for instance, the government seized control of Zaman, a major Turkish newspaper with ties to the Gulen movement.

In the hours following Friday's attempted coup, Turkish authorities dismissed nearly 3,000 judges and prosecutors from their posts, suggesting that the list for such a purge was already prepared.

Mr. Erdogan will likely use the failed coup "to further cement his grip on power by cracking down on his opponents," wrote Wolfango Piccoli, an analyst at Teneo Intelligence, in a note on Saturday. He is eager "to continue the witch-hunt, further worsening the state of Turkey's crumbling democracy."

For his part, Mr. Gulen has vehemently denied any involvement in the coup, pointing out that he was a victim of prior military takeovers in Turkey.

Mr. Erdogan and the Turkish government remain adamant that Mr. Gulen is the culprit. So far, no evidence of Mr. Gulen's involvement has been presented to the public.

Meanwhile, the conflict between Mr. Erdogan and Mr. Gulen has entered a new and dangerous phase. And the saga is set to continue, often at the expense of Turkish democracy.

With a report from Joanna Slater

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