Turkey defies US pressure

Aliaga : A Turkish court yesterday ordered an American pastor held for almost two years on terror charges to remain in prison, defying growing pressure from the US authorities for his release.

The case of Andrew Brunson, who ran a protestant church in the Aegean city of Izmir and was first detained in October 2016, has become a major sticking point in improving relations between Ankara and Washington.

This is the third time his release has been refused -- the court had in both previous hearings on April 16 and May 7 denied requests by the defence for Brunson to be set free. The judge said the next hearing would be on October 12.