Zehra Nur Düz
04 July 2019•Update: 04 July 2019
ANKARA
Turkey on Wednesday denounced the U.S.-based Washington Post newspaper for publishing an article by Cemil Bayik, one of the leaders of the PKK terrorist organization.
“A head terrorist of the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by many countries, including the U.S., and which has brutally massacred tens of thousands of innocent people -- has brazenly engaged in terrorist propaganda by using The Washington Post,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
This publication has violated the principle of “preventing the promotion of terrorism”, which is the most important commitment of the international community in the fight against terrorism, the statement said.
The statement also stressed that there should be no discrimination between terrorist organizations in the fight against terror.
It underlined that this approach is a tool for the PKK’s terrorist propaganda and is incompatible with the sensitivity displayed towards Daesh, al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations.
“This approach is a new and serious example of hypocrisy in the fight against terrorism,” the statement added.
The Washington Post provided space for a terrorist who is a member of a group listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and European Union, openly produces terrorist propaganda and violates U.S. laws, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in a written statement.
Asserting that this article did not fall under the category of freedom of press and expression, Kalin said the daily's actions were tantamount to publishing an article from a member of al-Qaeda or Daesh.
To portray one of the leaders of a terrorist organization as the representative of the Kurds is, above all, an insult to the Kurds, Kalin said.
He stressed that Turkey would continue to fight against all forms of terrorism and its supporters.
Turkey's Ambassador in Washington, Serdar Kilic, said on Twitter that the Post "took the profession of journalism to new lows" by giving a platform to one of the PKK’s "bloodthirsty" leaders.
“This is an affront not only to the Turkish people but also to the memories of tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children who became victims of terror at the hands of the PKK,” he stressed.
“It should be noted that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that providing support to even nonviolent activity of a terrorist organization violates the anti-terror laws of the U.S.,” Kilic added.
The PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU -- has waged a terror campaign against Turkey for more than 30 years, resulting in the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women and children.
