Erdogan said this at a celebration of the Battle of Manzikert. To learn about the Battle of Manzikert and why it was such a disaster (and how it led to the Crusades), see my new book The History of Jihad From Muhammad to ISIS.
Erdogan was “calling on people to ‘take ownership of’ Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, the Seljuks, the Ottomans, the Balkans and Turkey’s War of Independence.” While he is calling upon Muslims in Turkey to take pride in their history, our children in the U.S. are being taught to be ashamed of theirs. How will that turn out?
“Erdoğan claims the target is not himself but Turkey, Islam,” SCF, August 26, 2018:
Turkey’s political Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Sunday called on people to be alert to foreign plots including the currency crisis, underlining that the target is not himself but Turkey and Islam, the Sözcü daily reported.
“When you show a little sign of weakness, you see that they will attack Turkey like vultures. Some unaware people among us think that their target is Tayyip Erdoğan. No, the target is Turkey. The target is Islam,” Erdoğan said, speaking to a crowd in the Malazgirt district of Muş province for the 947th anniversary of the Battle of Manzikert (Malazgirt) in which the Seljuk Turks claimed victory over the Byzantine Empire in 1071.
Turkey has been facing a currency crisis since its relations with the US administration were dramatically strained over a court decision to put American pastor Andrew Brunson under house arrest after almost two years in pretrial detention rather than release him as demanded by the US administration.
Erdoğan on Monday said, “attacks against the Turkish economy are no different than attacking the adhan [call to prayer] and the flag.”
Calling on people to “take ownership of” Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, the Seljuks, the Ottomans, the Balkans and Turkey’s War of Independence and to never forget a coup attempt on July 15, 2016, Erdoğan said, “You are the hope of this country, the Muslim ummah and the whole of humanity.”…