The leaders of Egypt’s banned Muslim Brotherhood (MB), who have recently been asked to leave Qatar after pressure from other Gulf Arab countries, are planning to relocate to Turkey, following a recent welcoming statement by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. report by todayzaman
Al Jazeera Turk reported on Monday that Amr Darrag, the foreign relations representative of the Muslim Brotherhood, had already arrived in Turkey while Jamal Abdul Sattar, the former deputy head of the Egyptian Religious Affairs Directorate, intends to move to İstanbul.
“We, the Muslim Brotherhood, do not only seek a safe haven,” Sattar said, as quoted in the report. “We also seek to find a safe location from where we could fight against the bloody and brutal military coup against us in Egypt and run our activities free of pressure.”
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt accuse Turkey and Qatar of supporting the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist groups in the region. Turkey and Qatar are known as the two staunchest supporters of the MB, while other regional countries see the MB as a threat, especially after its role in the Arab Spring. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi designated the MB as a terrorist organization last year.
“If they [the Muslim Brotherhood leaders in exile in Qatar] request to come to Turkey, we will review these requests case by case,” Erdoğan was quoted as saying to a group of journalists late on Monday on his return flight from an official visit to Qatar. “If there are no reasons preventing them from coming to Turkey, we can facilitate their requests [to come to Turkey]. They can come to Turkey as any foreign guest comes,” Erdoğan was quoted as saying.
Erdoğan’s statements welcoming the MB leaders have drawn strong criticism, with Republican People’s Party (CHP) deputy Akif Hamzaçebi claiming that hosting MB members would show that Turkey is not a democratic country and that it has relations with terrorist groups. Stressing that Erdoğan welcomes the MB leaders while many countries, including Qatar, reject hosting them, Hamzaçebi called on Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu to act on this issue.
A number of the MB’s exiled leaders have been living in Qatar since the ouster of Morsi, but after being asked to leave, they may relocate to Turkey. The MB insists it is a peaceful group.
Some senior members of the MB may already be living in İstanbul, the Cumhuriyet daily reported on Tuesday, citing diplomatic sources who also said that Turkey may host all MB members except the ones wanted by Interpol. However, Turkey is presently hosting former Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi, who is wanted by the Iraqi authorities and Interpol.
Turkey has been very critical of the Egyptian administration which came to power after the military ousted former President Mohammed Morsi, a politician from the MB, last summer. Turkey’s refusal to accept his ousting prompted the new Egyptian leadership to cut ties with Turkey and expel the Turkish ambassador to Cairo. Ankara responded in kind, declaring Egypt’s ambassador to Turkey persona non grata.
Erdoğan has repeatedly said it is not possible for him to recognize the government that was formed after the military coup in Egypt that took place only a year after Morsi was democratically elected.
On Tuesday, local media reported that a senior leader from the banned Freedom and Justice Party (FJP) of Egypt — a party affiliated with the MB — left Qatar and moved to Turkey.
In the meantime, the head of the Egyptian Judges’ Club, Ahmad El-Zend, lashed out at “terrorists,” in reference to the MB, which is thought to be supported by Turkey and Qatar, the Al-Ahram news website reported on Sept. 11. El-Zend claimed that the MB is behind the recent deadly attacks against Egyptian judges.
“Go to Turkey and fill your bellies with money generated by prostitution, and it will lead you to hell. Go to Qatar and kneel at the feet of its rulers so you can obtain the crumbs of humiliation,” said El-Zend, addressing “terrorist groups” in his speech.