Trump Rejects Turkey’s Offer to Free Pastor Andrew Brunson if U.S. Drops Investigation Into Turkish Bank – Urban Christian News

Andrew Craig Brunson, an evangelical pastor from Black Mountain, North Carolina, arrives at his house in Izmir, Turkey. Brunson, who had been jailed in Turkey for more than one and a half years on terror and espionage charges was released and will be put under house arrest as his trial continues. The White House is announcing that the Treasury Department is imposing sanctions on two Turkish officials over a detained American pastor who is being tried on espionage and terror-related charges. (AP Photo/Emre Tazegul)

The Trump administration rebuffed Turkey’s offer to release detained American pastor Andrew Brunson if the U.S. halts the investigation into Turkish bank Halkbank, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.

The Turkish government agreed to drop terrorism charges against the pastor in exchange of the U.S. government dropping fines totaling billions of dollars against the bank. A senior White House official said the offer was rejected.

“A real NATO ally wouldn’t have arrested Brunson in the first place,” the official told the Journal.

Brunson has been detained in Turkey since December 2016 on espionage and terror-related charges after being accused of helping a group that allegedly coordinated the failed July 2016 military coup in the country. Both Brunson and the U.S. vehemently deny the accusations.

The White House has been clashing with Turkey and pressuring Ankara to release the pastor. The administration sanctioned Turkey’s justice and interior ministers last month and doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum earlier this month in a bid to get Turkey to release the…

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