Members of terror group allowed to speak at UN

By Bayram Altug

GENEVA (AA) - Despite all attempts by Turkey, two suspected members of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) were allowed to spread propaganda during a recent UN panel discussion.

A panel defaming and threatening Turkey and state-run Anadolu Agency was held by the terror group at the UN Office in Geneva during the 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

Abdullah Bozkurt, the former Ankara representative of the now defunct Today’s Zaman newspaper who is sought over charges of being a FETO member, and Levent Kenez, who is also suspected of being part of FETO’s media arm, spoke at the event.

The panel, which took place near the council’s offices despite written and verbal initiatives by the Permanent Mission of Turkey to the UN Office at Geneva, reflected the solidarity between the FETO and PKK terror organizations.

Eric Sottas, secretary-general of the World Organization Against Torture, who is also a known PKK sympathizer, moderated the panel, which was organized by the Global Alliance Against Female Genital Mutilation.

- UN rapporteur skips panel

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Fionnuala D. Ni Aolain, UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, decided not to take part in the event due to a “conflict of interest”.

The event’s organizers sent a letter to the Association of Accredited Correspondents at the United Nations and invited journalists to cover the panel, but only two showed up.

- Anadolu Agency targeted

PKK sympathizers in Switzerland taking part in the event showed solidarity with the FETO terror group.

Bozkurt threatened an Anadolu Agency reporter covering the panel ahead of the event, telling him that “from now on, you are on my radar.”

In response to the reporter asking “Aren’t you ashamed of always defaming Turkey on Twitter?”, Bozkurt said, “You wait. I will have a lot of things to say about Turkey at the panel.”

During his speech, he used a denying tactic employed by FETO members about the July 15, 2016 coup attempt in Turkey which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Both Bozkurt and Kenez overwhelmingly targeted Anadolu Agency during their speeches.

- Hostile stance toward Turkey

Bozkurt has been living in Stockholm for three years.

One of the founding members of the Stockholm Center for Freedom, he is reportedly receiving aid from the Swedish state.

Frequently appearing in Swedish media outlets, he attempts to justify FETO’s coup attempt and speaks against Turkish NGOs in Sweden.

Spreading black propaganda against Turkey on social media, he often sues Turkish citizens who oppose him.

Three days before the assassination in December 2016 of Andrei Karlov, Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, Bozkurt wrote an article saying that "ambassadors in Turkey are no longer safe" almost hinting at the envoy's possible murder.

On Dec. 19, 2016, Karlov was killed at an Ankara art gallery opening by Mevlut Mert Altintas, an off-duty police officer linked to the FETO. During a standoff, Altintas was shot dead by police.

Regarding Turkey’s Operation Olive Branch launched in northern Syria to eliminate the PYD/PKK and Daesh terror groups, he claimed on social media that it was conducted to fuel religious bigotry within the country.

He expressed on Twitter annoyance over recital of "Allahu Akbar!" during a rally of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey’s Bursa province.

In another Twitter post, Bozkurt targeted Turks protesting U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.