A North Carolina pastor has just been released from Turkey after being arrested over 2 years ago on terrorism abroad charges.
Pastor Andrew Brunson was initially arrested on October 7th, 2016 while serving as the pastor of Resurrection Church in Izmir, Turkey, a city of 4.2 million people.
TRT, a Turkish public broadcast agency, just produced this video about Brunson’s release;
After his initial arrest in 2016, Brunson was placed under house arrest with his wife Norine, not allowed to leave his apartment in Izmir, Turkey, with armed guards stationed outside of his door. His family members in North Carolina have commented that they thought his charges were completely false.
“He is not an armed terrorist trying to overthrow any government,” Brunson’s daughter, Jacqueline Brunson Furnari, said on July 24 State Department forum. “Every single thing in his life is centered on his faith.”
Brunson is now receiving a full medical check-up in Germany before flying back to the US. The President spoke with reporters yesterday and noted that Brunson has been invited to the Oval Office.
“He’s, I think, in good shape,” the president said. “He’ll be stopping most likely in Germany for a full check-up and then he’s going to be coming to the Oval Office, most likely on Saturday.”