Brunson lawyer to take plea for pastor's freedom to top Turkey court

Istanbul (dpa) - The lawyer for a US pastor at the centre of a diplomatic row between Washington and Ankara will take his freedom plea to Turkey‘s highest court on Wednesday.Lawyer Ismail Cem Halavurt on Tuesday told the online edition of pro-government daily Yeni Safak that he will file the appeal for pastor Andrew Brunson‘s release from house arrest in Turkey‘s Constitutional Court.He said, however, that he expected the process to take one or two months. Brunson‘s next court hearing is set for October 12.The 50-year-old pastor from the US state of North Carolina, who is being tried on espionage and terrorism-related charges, was arrested in December 2016.He is accused of links to the movement of Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic cleric who lives in exile in the US and whom Ankara blames for a coup attempt on July 15, 2016.Brunson is also accused of having ties to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers‘ Party (PKK).His trial began in April and he was moved to house arrest in July after spending about a year-and-a-half behind bars.The court in the Aegean province of Izmir - where Brunson lived and served for two decades - has so far refused to release him from house arrest and lift the travel ban against him.