American Pastor Andrew Brunson Freed Two Years After Being Accused of Connections to Turkish Coup Attempt

By The Editor

ALIAGA, Turkey — Andrew Brunson, the American pastor arrested in 2016 after being accused of espionage and having connections to those involved in a failed coup attempt against the Turkish government, is now free to leave the country after a judge sentenced him to time served.

“This is the day our family has been praying for,” Brunson said in a statement released by the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), which had been working toward the pastor’s release. “I am delighted to be on my way home to the United States. It’s been an extremely difficult time for our family and we want to express our appreciation to the millions of people around the world who have faithfully prayed for this day.”

As previously reported, Brunson and his wife, Norine, who are from Black Mountain, North Carolina, were detained in October 2016 after being accused of having “membership in an armed terrorist organization,” specifically, the military coup that attempted to overthrow the Turkish government that year. Brunson has pastored Resurrection Church in Izmir for over 20 years.

According to World Watch Monitor, Turkish authorities detained and/or jailed thousands in their efforts to find those behind the operation. While Brunson’s wife was released 12 days after being taken into custody, in December, Brunson was escorted into court, being told that a “secret informant” had accused him of involvement in terrorism.

In September 2017, Brunson was informed via a video conference with a Turkish judge that additional charges had been

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