Mustafa Güngör, a Turkish refugee residing in Kenya, was detained with his family and is at serious risk of refoulement to Turkey, Amnesty International Kenya said in a social media post on Sunday.
Güngör was arrested together with his wife Zeliha, their two daughters and his in-laws, and faces the risk of forced return to Turkey due to his alleged links to the faith-based Gülen movement. Concerns have been raised that his family could also be affected.
The arrest reportedly followed a request by Turkish authorities under what Amnesty described as a mutual legal assistance arrangement. Güngör is registered as a refugee in Kenya and holds a valid refugee identification card.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Güngör has worked as the IT manager of Light Academy Schools in Kenya since December 2011.
🚨 URGENT ACTION: FEAR OF REFOULEMENT IN KENYA
Amnesty International is deeply concerned that Mustafa Güngör who was arrested with his wife Zeliha, daughters Seniha Betül and Zeynep, and his in-laws Zümrüt and Salim is at serious risk of refoulement to Türkiye, where he could be… pic.twitter.com/fglE3Ufb9N
— Amnesty Kenya (@AmnestyKenya) December 20, 2025
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been targeting followers of the Gülen movement, inspired by the late Muslim cleric Fethullah Gülen, since corruption investigations in December 2013 implicated him as well as some members of his family and inner circle.
Dismissing the investigations as a Gülenist coup and a conspiracy against his government, Erdoğan began to target the movement’s members. He designated the movement as a terrorist organization in May 2016 and intensified the crackdown on it following an abortive putsch in July of the same year that he accused Gülen of masterminding. The movement strongly denies involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
Güngör’s arrest has raised concerns of refoulement following the forcible return of four Turkish nationals from Kenya last year despite being under the protection of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The move drew widespread criticism, including from UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
Under the international law principle of non-refoulement, asylum-seekers and refugees should be protected from removal to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened. The principle is a cornerstone of refugee protection enshrined in the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention as well as Kenya’s 2021 Refugee Law.
Since the coup attempt Erdoğan’s long arm has reached tens of thousands of Turkish citizens abroad. From surveillance through diplomatic missions and pro-government diaspora organizations to the denial of consular services and outright intimidation and illegal renditions, the Turkish government has employed a wide range of tactics against its critics overseas. The campaign has mostly relied on renditions, in which Turkey and its National Intelligence Organization (MİT) persuade other states to hand over individuals without due process. Victims of such operations have reported several human rights violations, including arbitrary arrest, torture and ill-treatment. MİT has acknowledged conducting operations for the forcible return of more than 100 people accused of links to the Gülen movement.
This article is based on reporting by the Stockholm Center for Freedom.
