Clarion Project | Sept. 27, 2018
While Pollyanna stories in the mainstream media tout Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the U.S. for the U.N. General Assembly as “an opportunity to reset ties” with Washington, statements by one of Erdogan’s top advisers threatening ‘operations’ against opponents in the U.S. tell the real story.
That is as shocking as it is alarming.
As reported by The Daily Caller, Ibrahim Kalin told reporters that Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization would stake out and target supporters of Erdogan’s rival Fethullah Gulen in the U.S. He has lived here since 1999.
With no compunction, Kalin announced Erdogan ordered “operations” against opponents on American soil, including potential kidnappings or even assassinations.
For anyone who thinks the Islamist president of Turkey is uttering empty threats, consider the fact that Turkish intelligence units kidnapped six Turkish nationals in Kosovo last March and brought them back to Turkey for trial as Gulen supporters.
In 2013, three Kurdish activists were murdered in Paris most likely by Turkish intelligence officials, according to French authorities.
Erdogan holds Gulen and his network of supporters – whom the Turkish president refers to as FETO (Fethullah Terrorist Organization) – responsible for the failed coup in Turkey in the summer of 2016.
“Operations similar to the one conducted in Kosovo can be carried out in other countries. All should know that Turkey will not allow the FETO to breathe a sigh of relief,” Kalin said Friday, adding that Erdogan “has given very clear instructions on this issue.”