President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticized Germany for not extraditing Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) members to Turkey.
In his speech at an award ceremony at the presidential complex in Ankara on Thursday, Erdogan said: “We are worried that Germany, which has been taking terrorist organizations like the PKK, DHKP-C under its wing, is now becoming a backyard for FETO.”
He likened terrorist groups to “scorpions that will sting its carrier frog because it’s in their nature.
“I don’t see the future of Germany -- which receives terrorists with open arms instead of fighting against PKK, FETO, Daesh or racist groups -- well,” he said. “Germany has become one of the most important countries that terrorists seek shelter in. I am saying it clearly.”
Germany, which hosts a three million strong Turkish community, is among countries where FETO, led by U.S.-based Fetullah Gulen, has a large network with dozens of private schools, businesses and media organizations.
Several important Gulenist figures, including prosecutors and journalists are believed to have fled from Turkey to Germany.