ISTANBUL (Reuters) – A Turkish court ruled on Wednesday to keep a U.S. consulate employee in jail as his trial on espionage charges continues, a lawyer said, meaning he will remain in detention until the next hearing in March. The trial of Metin Topuz has been one of many sources of strain between NATO allies Turkey and the U.S. Topuz, a Turkish translator and fixer for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) at the U.S. consulate in Istanbul, has been in custody for more than two years. The next hearing was set for March 10, said his lawyer, Halit Akalp. Topuz is charged with espionage and links to the network of cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is based in the United States and blamed by Turkey for plotting a failed 2016 coup.