Turkey says US pastor Andrew Brunson not freed due to pressure

President Donald Trump prays with American pastor Andrew Brunson in the Oval Office of the White House, Saturday October 13, 2018, in Washington. Brunson returned to the U.S. around midday after he was freed Friday, from nearly two years of detention in T

Turkey-s decision to release US pastor Andrew Brunson was not due to "any external pressure," the ruling Justice and Development Party-s spokesperson said Saturday. "It is the result of the processes of the independent Turkish judiciary," Omer Celik told reporters in the southern province of Adana, Xinhua reported.

"Despite of the impositions and threats over the case, none of Turkey-s institutions including the presidency took any action on the case due to pressure," Celik was quoted by state-run Anadolu Agency as saying. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly stressed that Friday-s release of Brunson was a ruling made by the independent Turkish judiciary. The 50-year-old pastor, who had lived in Turkey for over two decades, was detained in December 2016 over espionage charges and links to a network led by the U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen and the Kurdistan Workers- Party.

A court in western province of Izmir on Friday sentenced Brunson to jail for three years and 45 days, but set him free due to time served. In August, Brunson-s continued detention turned a flash point in relations between Ankara and Washington, two NATO allies, prompting the United States to impose sanctions on two Turkish ministers and double tariffs on aluminum and steel imports from Turkey.

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever