Turkey to expel 10 ambassadors who called for activist’s release

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday told his foreign minister to expel the ambassadors of 10 countries who earlier issued a joint statement

The US, Germany, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden had appealed for activist Osman Kavala’s release

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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Photo: Sputnik/Pool via Reuters

Published: 11:17pm, 23 Oct 2021Updated: 11:45pm, 23 Oct 2021

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday told his foreign minister to expel the ambassadors of 10 countries including Germany and the United States who appealed for the release of a jailed civil society leader.

The envoys issued a highly unusual joint statement on Monday saying the continued detention of Parisian-born philanthropist and activist Osman Kavala “cast a shadow” over Turkey.

The escalating row with the Western countries – most of which are also Nato allies – caps a torrid week for Turkey in which it was added to a global money-laundering and terrorism-financing blacklist and its currency plunged over fears of economic mismanagement and the risk of hyperinflation.

“I have ordered our foreign minister to declare these 10 ambassadors as persona non grata as soon as possible,” he said, referring to a term used in diplomacy which signifies the first step before expulsion.

“They must leave here the day they no longer know Turkey,” he said, accusing them of “indecency”.

The ambassadors of the US, Germany, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden had called for a “just and speedy resolution” to Kavala’s case.