Fethullah Gulen, the Muslim cleric and bitter foe of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Monday dismissed as doomed to fail Ankara's bid to extradite him from the United States over a failed coup attempt. Gulen, the spiritual leader of the Hizmet movement -- which promotes moderate Islam across dozens of countries and is dubbed a terrorist group by Erdogan -- firmly denies Ankara's charge he was behind the coup bid. "I have no concerns personally," Gulen said in an interview with several media outlets including AFP at his compound in the Pennsylvania town of Saylorsburg he has called home since 1999 under self-imposed exile. The United States "is a country of law," added the cleric. "The rule of law reigns supreme here. I don't believe this government will pay attention to anything that is not legally sound. "As a side note, I will die one day. Whether I die in my bed or in prison, I don't care," said Gulen. Erdogan told CNN a formal request for the extradition of the 75-year-old Gulen would be submitted in the coming days. But US Secretary of State John Kerry said Ankara would need to provide "evidence, not allegations" against Gulen. The Turkish government previously sought -- unsuccessfully -- to extradite Gulen after the corruption scandal that shook the country in 2013 and triggered the resignation of three ministers. "Because those were not legal demands, the US government did not pay attention, did not take them seriously," Gulen said. "They were not acceptable, reasonable and legal requests... Now through this attempted coup, it looks like they have strengthened their hands. They will attempt to do the same thing." -'Betrayal of the Turkish nation'- In addition to denying his own involvement, Gulen "condemned" the coup attempt that left at least 300 dead. "I have always been against military interventions in domestic politics," Gulen said. He called the putsch attempt "treason, a betrayal of the Turkish nation." The spiritual leader said if he had prior knowledge of the plans to attempt overthrowing the government he would have urged plotters to reconsider. "I would call out and say if you are a nationalist by virtue of your values, please don't attempt such a thing," Gulen said. He did voice concern that Turkey's government is moving away from democratic principles. "In such a horrible picture, it's not possible to talk about democracy anymore," Gulen said. "This kind of regime resembles more like a clan or a tribal administration." - Turkey needs US more - Gulen -- who members of his circle say suffers from diabetes and cardiovascular disease -- was visibly tired, noting that he has barely left home for two years. While he may not be concerned about his own fate, the opposition leader said he was very worried about worsening relations between the United States and key NATO ally Turkey. He recalled that Turkish troops fought alongside their American counterparts during the Korean War, and that the two nations have been close allies for decades at the trans-Atlantic military alliance that Turkey joined in 1952. "If it is separated from NATO, Turkey would go into a chaos of problems. It would evaporate itself. It would really finish itself," Gulen said. "The United States could find other options, but I think Turkey needs the United States' partnership more than the US needs Turkish partnership." Turkey has sacked almost 9,000 officials in its relentless crackdown against suspected plotters of the coup attempt. Obama pledges US help to Erdogan in probing coup attempt
Washington (AFP) July 19, 2016 - US President Barack Obama on Tuesday pledged US assistance to his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the investigation into last week's attempted coup, the White House said.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the two leaders also discussed in their phone call Turkey's request to extradite US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, Erdogan's bitter foe who the Turkish government alleges was linked to the coup attempt.

Obama "lauded the Turkish people's resolve against this violent intervention and their commitment to democracy," the White House said in a statement, in reference to the coup bid.

"President Obama made clear that the United States is willing to provide appropriate assistance to Turkish authorities investigating the attempted coup."

Earlier Tuesday, Turkey presented "materials" to the US government "related to Mr Gulen's status," Earnest told reporters, stopping short of confirming that a formal request had been made because the documents are still being reviewed.

"The Department of Justice and the Department of State will review those materials consistent with the requirements of the extradition treaty between the United States and Turkey that's been on the books for more than 30 years now."

While Earnest would not confirm the US government's position on Gulen's possible extradition, noting that the decision is not that of Obama, he stressed that the reclusive cleric is entitled to certain rights by law.

"There also is due process to which people who live in the United States are entitled to. And we will make sure that due process is followed as well," he said.

The decision of whether to extradite Gulen "is a legal decision that is made pursuant to a legal process, part of which is codified in a long-standing treaty between United States and Turkey. So that's the process that (we) will follow," Earnest said.

Turkish authorities earlier scrapped all TV and radio station licenses linked to what they called the "Fethullah Terrorist Organization," the government's derogatory name for the Gulen movement.

Last week's coup bid was the most serious threat to Erdogan since he took power first as prime minister in 2003, and saw rebel troops close down bridges in Istanbul, parliament bombed from the sky and protesters shot in the streets.

It has raised deep concerns about the stability of the strategic NATO partner, which has a key air base used in the US-led fight against the Islamic State group that has a large nuclear weapons stockpile.

Obama "strongly condemned" the violent uprising in his phone call with Erdogan on Tuesday and "urged that the investigations and prosecution of the coup's perpetrators be conducted in ways that reinforce public confidence in democratic institutions and the rule of law," the White House statement said.

Turkey has launched a massive post-coup purge. The crackdown on military, police and the judiciary has now widened to include the media and schools. Thousands have been detained.