Recep Tayyip Erdogan – Page 7

Debate in Greece brewing over Thrace muftis

July 31, 2018 Vassilis Nedos

(Kathimerini) The coalition is, according to sources, poised to push through the retirement of two government-appointed muftis in the Greek border region of Western Thrace. Muftis are Muslim legal experts who are empowered to give rulings on religious matters. Turkey has in […]

Erdogan calls Ozil, praises exit from German team

July 24, 2018 Raziye Akkoc

(AFP) President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday said he had backed Mesut Ozil’s decision to quit the German national team on racism grounds in a telephone call with the Turkish-origin football star, wading into a controversy that caused uproar in Germany. Ozil […]

DFB regrets Mesut Özil’s decision to quit Germany, rejects suggestions of racism Germany's football association, the DFB, has responded to the criticism it has received since Mesut Özil announced he had quit the national team. It rejected any suggestion of racism and stressed its integration work.

July 23, 2018 Hecko Flores

(Deutsche Welle) In a statement released on Monday, the DFB (German football association) said it regretted but respected Mesut Özil’s decision to retire from the national team. It also thanked the midfielder for his 92 international appearances for the country, as well as […]

Turks in Berlin rally around Ozil in racism row

July 23, 2018 Damien Stroka

(AFP) “He did the right thing,” said 63-year-old Abbas Haydin, as Turks in Berlin on Monday rallied around football star Mesut Ozil and praised his decision to quit the Germany team over perceived racism. “He has set an example. This was bound […]

Mesut Özil quits Germany over Erdogan controversy Footballer Mesut Özil has quit the national team amid the fallout from meeting Turkey's president and Germany's World Cup exit. In a strongly worded statement, Özil said he would 'no longer stand for being a scapegoat.'

July 22, 2018 Matt Pearson

(Deutsche Welle) Mesut Özil said on Sunday he will no longer play international football for Germany following the fallout from his meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The 29-year-old issued three lengthy and hard-hitting statements via Twitter, in which he singled out German […]

Critics say Turkish government using US mosques to play politics, spy on foes

July 17, 2018 Hollie McKay

(Fox) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent re-election is fueling concerns about his growing powers not just in Turkey but here in the U.S., according to experts who believe he’s determined to spread his controversial brand of Islamist-nationalistic fervor through a network […]

Turkey’s Gulen movement on the rise in Germany After Turkey's foiled coup attempt in 2016, many supporters of exiled Muslim cleric Fetullah Gulen were driven out of the country. But in Germany, the movement is increasingly gaining influence, writes Gunnar Köhne.

July 13, 2018 Gunnar Köhne

(Deutsche Welle) When the Turkish government crushed an attempted coup on July 15, 2016, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed supporters of Fethullah Gulen, a Muslim cleric in self-imposed exile in the United States. There were plenty of rumors about Gulen’s involvement in […]

Germany outlaws Turkish boxing gang

July 11, 2018 Soeren Kern

(Gatestone) German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer has banned a Turkish boxing gang called “Osmanen Germania BC” (“Germania Ottomans”) on the grounds that it poses a serious threat to public order. The gang, most of whose members are Turkish Germans, is said to […]