Photo: ISIS militants
An Indian security service source has claimed that the Turkish state helped Indians go to Syria and fight for ISIS during the Syrian civil war and that Ankara based agents are supporting Islamic extremists operating inside Pakistan and India who are seeking to target the Indian state.
An unnamed Indian security official working with the central security establishment, stated according to ZeeNews in India:
"Turkey's attempts to fund Islamic organisations based in India, collaboration with political and non-profit groups, and subversion of Indian students are a couple of things that are adding to India's worries."
During the interview, the source claimed that the Turkish president Recep Erdogan is seeking to back these groups in order to increase his support amongst south-Asians of Islamic faith and that these covert operations, which includes the funding of such groups, is overseen by his son Bilal. He also claims that much of this is being funded by allegedly non-profit Islamic charities based in Turkey.
Erdogan certainly does have precedent in associating with those of a militant persuasion. On the 22nd of August this year, he welcomed Hamas leadership, including second in command Saleh al-Arouri, to Turkey for talks. Hamas is a radical Islamic Palestinian organisation which is bitterly opposed to both Israel and Palestinians who do not share their ideals for a free Palestine, namely secular Fatah who were the main historical players in the Palestinian nationalist movement.
This goes to show that Erdogan is not so much interested in the plight of Palestinians but in a radical Islamist agenda.
In Turkey itself Erdogan has long given tacit support for the 'Grey Wolves' terrorist organisation who follow an extreme Turkish nationalist and Islamic style agenda. They have existed for decades and been involved in thousands of killings, mostly against the left-wing and the Kurdish community. They are also said to be involved heavily in drug trafficking and extortion. In 2018 Erdogan gave the Grey Wolves salute to a crowd of his supporters.
Similarly, Erdogan is accused by France of funding and arming Islamic militants in the Libyan civil war, from which Turkey hopes to gain significant control over Libya's oil reserves.
Erdogan himself has been advancing a radical-Islamic based policy in Turkey, authorising the conversion of former churches and UNESCO world heritage sites into mosques. He has also invaded Northern Syria and since the 2016 failed coup attempt imprisoned thousands of opponents. Turkey now has more journalists imprisoned than any other country in the world.
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