Brawl in Turkey's parliament after MP criticises Erdogan

Brawl in Turkeys parliament after MP criticises Erdogan
Date: 5.3.2020 16:00

Dozens of parliamentarians joined the fistfight, some climbing over desks to throw punches.

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A fistfight erupted in the Turkish parliament on Wednesday during a speech by an opposition legislator who earlier accused President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of disrespecting Turkish soldiers who martyred in Syria.
 
Dozens of parliamentarians joined the brawl, some climbing on top of desks to throw punches, while others tried to stop the fighting, according to video footage of the brouhaha. 
 
Some legislators fell to the ground during the fray, Turkey's Haberturk television reported.
 
Engin Özkoç, a legislator from the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), accused the president at a news conference and later in tweets of disrespecting soldiers martyred last week in Syria's Idlib region. 
 
Özkoç called Erdogan "dishonourable, ignoble, low and treacherous".
 
He also accused the president of sending the children of Turkey's people to fight while Erdogan's own offspring allegedly avoided long-term military service.
 
During a speech to members of his party, Erdogan earlier accused the opposition of being "dishonourable, ignoble, low and treacherous" for questioning Turkey's military involvement in Syria's northwest province.
 
The speaker of Parliament, Mustafa Şentop, condemned the statement by the opposition legislator.
 
Prosecutors launched an investigation into a suspected insult of the president, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported. 
 
At least 59 Turkish soldiers have been martyred in Idlib since Turkey began its military campaign in Syria's last rebel bastion, where a Russia-backed government offensive has forced nearly one million people to flee towards the shut Turkish border in search of safety.

YEREL HABERLER

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