Turkish Victory Party leader Umit Ozdag faces trial for ‘inciting hatred’ | Court news
A Turkish court ordered the arrest of Umit Ozdag on charges of public incitement and sedition against Syrian refugees following his detention on Monday.
A court in Turkey has ordered the detention of the leader of the Victory Party, Umit Ozdag, pending trial on charges of inciting public hatred through social media.
Ozdag was arrested on Monday for allegedly insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over comments in which he said “even the Crusades did not do as much damage to Turkey as Erdogan.”
The party said the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office released Ozdag from custody on charges of insulting the president, but subsequently ordered his arrest on charges of “inciting hatred and enmity in the public.”
Prosecutors presented 11 of Ozdag’s posts on X as evidence against him, the party announced. Prosecutors also held Ozdag responsible for riots against Syrian refugees last year in the central Turkish province of Kayseri, during which hundreds of homes and businesses were attacked.
In a post on X, Ozdag said his arrest means the arrest of the people he represents and those who oppose the latest developments in the country.
“Workers who had to survive on the minimum wage, pensioners who lived below the threshold of hunger were arrested! … You can arrest me, but you can’t silence me without killing me!”
Ozdag, a 63-year-old former academic, is an outspoken critic of Turkey’s refugee policy and has called for the repatriation of millions of Syrian refugees.
Ozgur Ozel, leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), protested the arrest, saying the decision was a murder of justice, destroying both democracy and the independence of the judiciary.
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu also protested Ozdag’s arrest and said it amounted to political interference in the judiciary.
