Former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who also previously served as Turkey’s foreign minister, announced on his official Facebook page that he would sue people who had shared a comment he made on the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), arguing that these references are part of a deliberate campaign against him.
As Turkey is increasingly targeted by ISIL, many social media users refer to a paraphrased version of Davutoğlu’s remarks describing ISIL as “a bunch of angry kids.” Davutoğlu rejects such a description of his words. The statement he made while foreign minister that is often referred to in criticizing him is as follows:
“ISIL could be seen as a radical and terrorist structure, but there are Turks, Arabs and Kurds among its participants. The structure there [in Iraq] and the previous grievances and anger have resulted in a wide reaction.”
Davutoğlu sued several journalists during his term as a prime minister over critical Twitter messages.