Erdoğan slams Macron over ‘Islamic terrorism’ expression
ISTANBUL
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Dec. 9 slammed French President Emmanuel Macron’s remarks and once again rejected the term “Islamic terrorism.”
Speaking at the opening of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ministers of Social Affairs Summit in Istanbul, Erdoğan criticized Macron for using “Islamic terrorism” at the NATO Summit held in London.
“Here at the last NATO Summit, the president of France is talking about Islamic terrorism. How many times have I told him, Islam literally derives from word of ‘salam’ and its meaning [in Arabic] is peace. How do you combine peace and terror with the expression of Islamic terror? There’s no such a thing,” Erdoğan said.
Erdoğan also stressed that Macron was silent to his own face, but made such statements at the NATO Summit. “What is it now? Yellow vests came out in Paris. Come on, fix it, stop it. Why can’t you stop it? Why can’t you bring it into shape peacefully? As you sow, so you shall reap,” Erdoğan said.
Erdoğan recalled that Turkey hosts 5.5 million refugees and migrants, of which 3,650,000 are Syrians and 350,000 are Kurds. “Only in this [2019] year, nearly 57,000 people were left to die by other countries taken from the sea, we saved their lives. We serve asylum seekers in our country at the same level as our own citizens. Moreover, we provide these services without any serious help from abroad,” Erdoğan said.
The Turkish president stated that over $ 40 billion spent by Turkey for asylum seekers and refugees and a maximum of around 3 billion euros in financial support given to Turkey by the European Union.
Erdoğan also said that some of the asylum seekers “who entered Turkey illegally” were sent back to Syria and 370,000 people returned to Syria and settled after the region was secured, referring to “Operation Peace Spring.”
Turkey launched “Operation Peace Spring” on Oct. 9 to eliminate the YPG from northern Syria, east of the Euphrates River, in order to secure Turkey’s borders, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees and ensure Syria’s territorial integrity.
Recalling that the Jerusalem case laid the foundation of the OIC, Erdoğan said that the situation in Jerusalem and Palestine is getting worse every day.
He noted that Israel's attitude, which does not recognize rights, law, justice and humanity, constantly deepens the crisis in the region against Muslims.
Erdoğan said that there is a picture of Palestine, in which innocent young girls, fathers, mothers, elders, children and young people are publicly executed and brutally killed by Israel.
“Moreover, I would like to point out this rudeness of Israel is almost encouraged by Western countries and I would like to say with great sorrow that some Arab states do this too,” he noted.
"We will never stop defending the rights of the Palestinians and standing in solidarity with all the oppressed," he said.
Erdoğan said that the imperialist approach of divide, disintegrate and rule continues in Islamic countries.
"The better we protect children, women, elderly and disabled against western threats, the more we protect our family structure," he said.
The Turkish president said that the "isolated" Islamic countries are wasting their opportunities and energies.
"Muslims, who make up about one-fourth of the world's population today, do not have, unfortunately, the political influence or the economic, social or cultural prowess," said Erdoğan.
Erdoğan stressed that it is impossible to get somewhere just by complaining or talking, adding that there is a need to think carefully, analyze and produce solutions to the causes of Muslims today.
"It is our responsibility, the Muslims, to take the Islamic civilization to its rightful place."
