Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday continued his targeting of opposition leaders, in particular Republican People’s Party (CHP) Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, equating him with Australian senator Fraser Anning, calling them both terrorists.
“There is a terrorist in Turkey similar to the one in Australia,” Erdoğan said in reference to Kılıçdaroğlu at an election rally in the conservative Central Anatolian province of Konya. “What is the difference] between the two]?” the president asked, claiming that Kılıçdaroğlu is the same as the senator from Australia who blamed Muslims for the mosque attack in New Zealand. The Australian senator was later egged by a teenager protesting his hateful remarks about Islam.
Erdoğan based his accusation on Kılıçdaroğlu’s claim of “terrorism stemming from the Islamic world” in a speech.
“You are a dangerous man,” Erdoğan told the CHP leader.
The president also targeted opposition party chairman Meral Akşener of the Good (Iyi) Party, stating that worse days are to come. According to Erdoğan, Akşener attributed false statements to him and promised to make her pay for her remarks. Akşener recently criticized the president for calling people who are voting for the opposition alliance “terrorists,” filing a lawsuit against her immediately. Erdoğan brought up Kılıçdaroğlu’s parliamentary immunity, saying that he is working with his lawyers to get around it.