Dutch man faces prosecution in Holland for ‘insulting’ Erdoğan

THE HAGUE

A 64-year-old man from Sittard in the Netherlands will face prosecution for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a series of offensive e-mails he sent to the Turkish Embassy back in 2016. 

In the e-mails, he compared Erdoğan to Adolf Hitler and also attached a photo of the Turkish president in Nazi uniforms, according to the BBC.

An investigation into the Dutchman was launched after the Turkish Embassy in The Hague filed a complaint against the individual.

Following the formal complaint, the Dutch police found that the man lives in the southern province of Sittard.

The public prosecutor in The Hague started an investigation against the man who is now facing charges of insulting a friendly head of state.

The prosecutor’s office will announce on Aug. 17 when the suspect should appear before the court.

Under Dutch laws, insult is punishable with six months in prison, but the respective law foresees up to eight months in jail for insulting a friendly head of state.

The Dutch parliament recently accepted a draft bill to annul the legislation regarding the insult on foreign heads of state, however since it has not been approved by the Senate, the law still remains in effect.

Far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders criticized the move to prosecute the Dutch man.

“The Dutch judiciary is at the service of Erdoğan,” Wilders wrote on Twitter.