Former senior intel official warns of political murders in Turkey

A former senior intelligence official has warned of political murders in Turkey following mafia leader Sedat Peker's allegations. He also said that the current developments are worse than those of the 1990s.

Tuesday May 18 2021 12:31 pm

Duvar English

A former senior intelligence official has warned of political murders in Turkey following mafia leader Sedat Peker's series of allegations against current and former politicians.

The former head of the counter-terror department of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), Mehmet Eymür, said that the atmosphere today is worse than that of the 1990s - a decade that was marred by mafia-state-politics relations.

"There was at least a working structure back then," Eymür told the daily Sözcü on May 18, adding that he expects the prosecutors to look into Peker's claims.

"Everyone is talking about this and expecting his videos every day. What else should happen?" Eymür asked.

Peker, currently in Dubai after he fled Turkey to avoid prosecution, has been releasing videos on YouTube to reveal deep state secrets.

Peker has accused former minister Mehmet Ağar, one of the shadiest figures in Turkish politics, and his son Tolga Ağar, a deputy from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), of various crimes, including murder and purchasing Bodrum's Yalıkavak Marina through threatening Azeri businessman Mübariz Mansimov Gurbanoğlu.

In his fourth video dated May 13, he listed a series of accusations against Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu after he called Peker "a mafia scum," prompting Turks to call on the judiciary to look into the claims.

Peker claimed that the minister assigned him personal guards for his security before he fled Turkey and that they were close in the past. The mafia leader alleged that Soylu informed him about the investigation into him.

Eymür on May 18 commented on Peker's fifth video, in which the mafia leader listed what the prosecutors should do.

"Such disgrace wasn't the case in the 1990s. Not to this degree," he said.

"I want to repeat something that I said in the past. This course of events may lead to political murders," Eymür added.

Davutoğlu calls for 'Operation Clean Hands'

Separately, Future Party leader Ahmet Davutoğlu has called for an "Operation Clean Hands" following Peker's accusations against Soylu.

"A clean political revolution can cleanse this situation," he said, calling on Soylu to resign.

#TemizEllerGelecek❗️ pic.twitter.com/ry6XWuwvPy
— Ahmet Davutoğlu (@Ahmet_Davutoglu) May 17, 2021

"If this government can't handle this, it should resign altogether and the people should decide on who will build clean politics in elections. Let's get ready to mobilize for political morality," Davutoğlu added.