The Latest: Turkish minister shrugs off sanctions for pastor

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on an American pastor detained in Turkey (all times local):

Turkey's justice minister has shrugged off a U.S. decision to impose sanctions against him and another Turkish government minister, saying he doesn't have a penny to his name anywhere outside Turkey. “President Trump has made it abundantly clear that the United States expects Turkey to release him immediately.”

Earlier this week, pastor Brunson was moved from prison to an apartment where he remains under house arrest, but U.S. officials still issued sanctions to Turkey’s Minister of Justice Abdulhamit Gul and Minister of Interior Suleyman Soylu who played leading roles in the organizations responsible for Brunson’s arrest and detention, according to the WH. Pompeo, en route to Singapore, said in Anchorage, Alaska, that the Turkish government refused to release Brunson “after numerous conversations between President Trump and President Erdogan and my conversations with Foreign Minister (Mevlut) Cavusoglu.”

“President Trump concluded that these sanctions are the appropriate action,” he said. “The President has been closely following the ongoing situation in Turkey involving Pastor Andrew Brunson,” said Press Secretary Sarah Sanders at the daily White House briefing.”We’ve seen no evidence that pastor Brunson has done anything wrong and we believe he is a victim of unfair and unjust attention by the government of Turkey.”

The post Trump admin sanctions Turkish officials over detained American pastor appeared first on 850 WFTL. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told reporters: “We’ve seen no evidence that Pastor Brunson has done anything wrong, and we believe he is a victim of unfair and unjust detention by the government of Turkey.”

On Tuesday, a Turkish court rejected Brunson’s appeal to be released from house arrest during his trial on terrorism charges. Brunson faces up to 35 years in jail if convicted on charges of acting on behalf of two groups deemed by Turkey to be terrorists - the movement led by US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen who Ankara says was behind the 2016 coup bid and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
The White House imposes sanctions on two Turkish officials over the detention of Andrew Brunson, an American pastor who is being tried on espionage and terror-related charges.