Top Syrian Sunni cleric criticizes Turkish PM’s stance

DAMASCUS

An image grab taken from the state-run Syrian TV shows Syria's embattled President Bashar al-Assad (L) siting next to Syrian Grand Mufti Ahmed Hassoun during a prayer to mark the birth of Islam's Prophet Mohammed on January 24, 2013 in Damascus. AFP photo

Syria’s grand mufti has criticized Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s support for opposition militants in a televised interview, state news agency SANA has reported. 

Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, the top Sunni cleric in Syria, told Beirut-based al-Mayadin TV that Erdoğan’s stance surprised him given that he had earlier expressed his personal respect for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The cleric also said he did not understand why Turkey opened its borders “to allow murderers and thieves to cross into Syria.”

He added that Syria’s doors were open to those willing to participate in dialogue, giving his full support to al-Assad’s reform program, which he described as “more comprehensive than the Geneva Statement.” Hassoun also said he held preachers in other Arab countries as responsible for some of the violence in Syria. 

Erdoğan’s policy insane: Syria deputy FM
 
Meanwhile, Syria’s deputy foreign minister, Faisal Miqdad, told daily SoL that Erdoğan would pay the price for what he has done, adding that Erdoğan and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu’s policies were “insane.”

“They have done such insane thing in the past; they might do more stupid things in the coming period,” he said, adding that Turkey had shown its “true face” during the insurrection and claimed that there was close cooperation between Turkish and Israeli intelligence. 
 
Miqdad also warned Erdoğan that the Turkish people would call him to account, while adding that Syria had suggested that Turkey be added to the list of states that support terrorism.