Allegations that Halit Ergül hosted FETÖ meetings at his hotel: The July 15 detail... Many fugitives stayed there!

It has emerged that Halit Ergül, the owner of the hotel in Kartalkaya where 78 people died in a fire, hosted the Abant Meetings of the Journalists and Writers Foundation, one of the civil structures of FETÖ. It was determined that fugitive FETÖ member Ekrem Dumanlı also stayed at the hotel. Here are the details...

Don't leave your news choices to an algorithm - decide for yourself what you read. Add 12punto to your preferred sources!

Allegations that Halit Ergül hosted FETÖ meetings at his hotel: The July 15 detail... Many fugitives stayed there!

Following the major fire disaster in Kartalkaya, it has emerged that Halit Ergül, the owner of the hotel where 78 people lost their lives, hosted events linked to FETÖ in the past.

It was determined that the Gazelle Hotel, owned by Ergül, opened its doors to the Abant Meetings organized by the Journalists and Writers Foundation, one of FETÖ's civilian structures.

According to a report by Oda TV, the main agenda of the meeting held in January 2016, just 7 months before the July 15 coup attempt, was "Turkey's Problem of Democracy." Many academics and journalists attended the meeting.

EKREM DUMANLI'S NOTE DREW ATTENTION

It was learned that Ekrem Dumanlı, the former editor-in-chief of the shuttered FETÖ media outlet Zaman newspaper and a fugitive FETÖ member, also stayed at the hotel. Moreover, Dumanlı, who was hosted at the hotel before its construction was even completed, left the following note in the guestbook:

"I was very happy to be a guest at this beautiful facility. I am sure it will be a facility that Turkey will love very much in the coming days. Wishing you continued success."

MANY AKP FIGURES ALSO ATTENDED

Following the "AKP-Cemaat" tension that occurred on December 17-25, 2013, the profile of participants in the Abant Meetings also changed. While many AKP figures had attended previously, as the process progressed, more dissident AKP members and figures from other political segments were invited to these meetings.

The meeting held at the Gazelle Hotel in January 2016 was attended by figures such as former Minister of Culture Ertuğrul Günay, former DEP Chairman Yaşar Kaya, HDP deputies Hüda Kaya and İmam Taşçıer, and journalists Nazlı Ilıcak, Mümtazer Türköne, Nuray Mert, and Ahmet İnsel.

In addition to the Abant Meetings, the Gazelle Hotel was also preferred as a place for accommodation and meetings by many AKP figures. Among those who left notes in the hotel's guestbook were: