Turkish Islamic Scholar Gülen Loses 72-Year-Old Brother

Seyfullah Gülen, the brother of leading Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, died at the age of 72 on Friday morning at the private Şifa Hospital in Erzurum, where he had been receiving treatment after a heart attack.

Seyfullah Gülen, who was also the father of Samanyolu TV anchor Kemal Gülen, had been in the hospital due to heart and respiratory problems since suffering a heart attack four months ago. He was admitted to the intensive care unit a month ago after he was struck by partial paralysis. He had been on life support but failed to respond to treatment and passed away on Friday.

Known as Sibgatullah by his family, he was a retiree who had formerly worked at Atatürk University. He was married and a father of nine.

Şifa Hospital's head physician, Dr. Sebahattin Dalga, told Toady's Zaman that Gülen died at 7:30 a.m. on Friday. Following a funeral at Lala Paşa Mustafa Mosque in Erzurum on Sunday, Gülen will be buried in the village of Korucuk in Erzurum's Pasinler district, where he was born.

Dr. Fesih Kara, who was Seyfullah Gülen's consulting physician, said he had been in intensive care for a month. Expressing his condolences to the Gülen family, Kara said he was dependent on machines for his heart and lungs.

Seyfullah Gülen's younger brother Mesih Gülen said they had spoken with Fethullah Gülen but that they did not expect him to attend his brother's funeral. Unable to hold back tears, Mesih Gülen told Today's Zaman that his children had been expecting him to recover.

Another brother of Fethullah Gülen, Hasbi Nida Gülen, died at the age of 66 in October 2012 at a hospital in Ankara, where he was receiving treatment for lung cancer.

The oldest of eight children, Fethullah Gülen has five brothers, the late Seyfullah (Sıbgatullah), Mesih, the late Hasbi (Nida), Salih and Kutbettin. He also has two sisters, Nurhayat and Fazilet.

Orhan Yıldırım (Cihan/Today's Zaman)