Erdoğan slams media, calls opposition to stand united

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

DHA Photo

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan strongly criticized and described some columnists as “sycophants” for their critical columns over the recently downed Turkish jet incident. At the same time he thanked oppositional parties for standing united with the government on this ongoing crisis with Syria.

“I particularly want thank Mr. [Devlet] Bahçeli [leader of the Nationalist Movement Party] for his speech he made today [Tuesday]. I want to thank him for expressing solidarity, unity and want to see the same approach from all political parties,” Erdoğan said.

“No one has the luxury of hurting one’s own country’s interests in the name of opposing [the government] over Syria,” Erdoğan said, calling for political parties to avoid making this incident a matter of daily political polemic. “I wholeheartedly believe that this same sensitivity will be shown by all political parties, non-governmental organizations, media and [Turkey’s] 75 million citizens during this process,” he said. However, Erdoğan had strong words of criticism for columnists who had criticized the government’s policies towards Syria and asked why a Turkish jet was flying in that region to begin with. “They ruthlessly act as if they are not from this society, not citizens of this country,” he said. Erdoğan went further to say that “some of these journalists may have been sold,” and added “those who have no idea about the history of Turkish people cannot understand the government’s policies towards Syria.”