Erdoğan accuses the US and social media over ‘Gare’

* Photo: Murat Kula - Rize / AA

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President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke at the 7th Ordinary Congress of his party in Turkey's Black Sea province of Rize today (February 15).

With this speech, Erdoğan also attended the AKP provincial congresses in Aksaray, Kırşehir and Konya via video conference.

Reiterating his call for drafting a new constitution for Turkey, Erdoğan referred to the year 2023, the centennial year of the foundation of the Republic, and said, "We have turned 2023 into a year zero in terms of several critical issues. Our aim is to enable our country to have a new and civilian constitution. The 2023 elections are of historical importance."

Erdoğan also spoke about the military operation in Gare, a region in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraq's north, and said that 51 people were killed and two people were caught in the operation.

Expressing his condolences to the families of the 13 security personnel killed in the Gare region, Erdoğan said, "Those brothers of ours were hostages by the hands of terrorists. Since then, we calculated how we could rescue them, we had always calculated this. We strived a lot. At the night of these operations, we wanted to save those brothers of ours."

Erdoğan also announced that "they would bring the details of this incident into agenda by submitting a Parliamentary inquiry."

Erdoğan has rebuked the US and social media

In the context of these losses of life in northern Iraq, Erdoğan also referred to the US, which released a statement about the issue today.

Telling the US that if it wants "to continue our alliance globally and at NATO, then you must stop siding with terrorists," Erdoğan accused the US of "obviously backing" the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), People's Protection Units (YPG) and Democratic Union Party (PYD):

"The US has released a statement. It is farcical. You were supposedly not on the side of the PKK and YPG, right? You are obviously on its side and behind its back. We have, unfortunately, all seen it from the beginning.

"The blood of innocent people martyred in northern Iraq is on the hands of all defending, supporting and sympathizing with PKK terrorists."

Erdoğan also said, "Social media platforms that have turned into the propaganda apparatus of terrorist organizations... You are all responsible for the despicable execution of 13 unarmed, innocent people. You are all responsible for the vile execution of 13 innocent people.

"After this massacre that happened in Gara, no country, institution, structure or person can question, criticize or take a stand against Turkey's operations in Iraq and Syria. From now on, there are two ways in front of everyone: They will either act with Turkey and take a stand against terror without any 'but's or they will give an account first before the conscience of people then before international platforms as a party to every murder of the bloodshedding organization." (AS/SD)