PodcastErdoğan files complaint against French magazine over military op comments
President Erdoğan has filed a criminal complaint against the editor-in-chief and a reporter of French magazine Le Point over the publication's remarks accusing the Turkish President for carrying out "ethnic cleansing" against the Kurds. The cover of the issue was slammed by Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın, who addressed France by saying, "Your colonizing days are over."
Duvar English
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has filed a criminal complaint against the editor-in-chief and a reporter of France's Le Point magazine over its cover.
The front page of this week's edition of Le Point magazine features a picture of Erdoğan making a military salute with the words: "Ethnic cleansing, the Erdoğan method" and "Are we going to let him massacre the Kurds?"
The cover prompted Erdoğan to ask Ankara prosecutors to open a case against Etienne Gernelle, the managing editor of Le Point, and Romain Gubert, the author of the article. The complaint accuses them of insulting the president, a crime in Turkey.
Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın on Oct. 24 slammed the magazine and what he sees as France's anti-Turkey stance, saying that France had colonized many countries in the past and slaughtered thousands of people.
La France qui a colonisé de nombreux pays africains comme l’Algérie et le Maroc, qui a massacré des milliers de personnes, pratiqué le commerce des esclaves et qui a regardé le génocide au Rwanda.
— Ibrahim Kalin (@ikalin1) October 24, 2019
Et un magazine français qui a lancé une calomnie de nettoyage ethnique contre nous! pic.twitter.com/nmc2CuY7h6
"They [France] are trying every way to protect their puppets but to no avail," he said, referring to the People's Protection Units (YPG).
La raison derrière leurs attaques contre notre Président est claire : Ils ont paniqué quand leurs intrigues ont été déjouées avec le coup dur porté à leurs pions en Syrie, le PKK.
— Ibrahim Kalin (@ikalin1) October 24, 2019
Ils recourent à toute sorte de voies mais ils n’obtiennent pas de résultat.
"Kurds are not your contractors and they will not be. Your colonizing days are over."
Les Kurdes ne sont pas vos mandataires et ne le seront pas. Vos journées de colonisation sont finies.
— Ibrahim Kalin (@ikalin1) October 24, 2019
Turkey launched its military offensive in northern Syria on Oct. 9 with the aims of clearing the border from the YPG, which is the Syrian affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and establishing a "safe zone."
Ankara views the YPG as a terrorist organization due to its links with the PKK, which is designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the European Union.