RELIGION/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TURKEY: “US officials believe they’re on the verge of securing the release of Andrew Brunson, the American pastor jailed by Turkey on accusations he helped plot a coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to a source familiar with the matter. The source cautioned that US officials are counting on Turkish officials to follow through on their end of the agreement. Brunson appeared Friday in court in Aliaga, on the Aegean Sea, facing three judges who could release him or jail him for up to 35 years. Brunson arrived at the court before dawn Friday, while his wife, Norine Brunson, arrived later in a US diplomatic vehicle. Bill Devlin, a supporter of the detained pastor and the co-pastor of the Infinity Bible Church in New York, told CNN before entering the courthouse: ‘We’re hoping by the end of business today that he’s going to walk a free man.'”
–Jim Acosta, Evan Perez, Nicole Gaouette and Ben Wedeman, “US close to securing release of pastor Andrew Brunson from Turkey, source says,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, October 11, 2018 7:19 am