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Rep. Schneider Condemns Turkish Deputy Prime Minister's Unacceptable Accusation

Statement

Date: July 3, 2013
Issues: Religion Foreign Affairs

Today, U.S. Congressman Brad Schneider (IL-10) released the following statement condemning Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay's recent comments that suggested the unrest in Turkey was linked to the Jewish people:

"These baseless statements from the Turkish Deputy Prime Minister are simply unacceptable. Turkey is a key U.S. ally, and we expect more from our allies toward promoting peace in the region. Turkey has a proud history of tolerance, including opening her doors to the Jewish community during the Inquisition and Holocaust. However, statements of this nature, propagated by the government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, hurt its ability to have a positive influence in the region and risks creating unnecessary concerns for the safety for the Jewish community in Turkey."

On July 2, Daily News published a video of Atalay claiming that the Jewish Diaspora was responsible for encouraging the late-May protests in Turkey.

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