There has been an unexpected discourse for the last two weeks, starting before the elections, on whether Türkiye was trading with Israel.
Immediately after the election, another allegation was made against the Bayraktar family. Upon closer examination, the accusations target two of the strongest sides of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the conservative community in Türkiye that stand strong.
The first is President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's relationship with the oppressed people of the world, especially Palestine. Wherever you go in the world today, Africa, Asia, the Far East, Turkic states, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, India, wherever there is a Muslim, an oppressed person, we know this person has built an emotional bridge with Erdoğan. On the other hand, the second accusation concerns the Turkish defense industry, which the country has been proud of for quite some time now.
While Erdoğan has been in power in Türkiye for 20 years, he has been the voice of the oppressed in the country, carried them to politics and kept them in power for 20 years, which is quite rare globally.
Whatever the circumstances are, it is valuable that Erdoğan is the representative of the people who have an emotional bridge with him – who have been oppressed, exploited, marginalized, and who have not received a share of prosperity.
Whoever stands up against the colonial powers of the world, oppressors and the West, oppressed nations stand behind him. Erdoğan is the one who stood on the rostrum of the United Nations and spoke out loudly against the occupation of Palestine while showing maps, and in a way, gave Palestine a voice on a global stage.
Moreover, when the Israeli-Palestinian clashes started, there was an effort to define Hamas as a terrorist organization all over the world, especially in the murderous state of Israel. It was at this time that Erdoğan came out and said: "People who defend their own land are not terrorists. They are the mujahideen (warriors) who defend their own land."
After President Erdoğan used the term "warriors" for Hamas, many actors – especially Arab leaders – hesitated to call Hamas terrorists, as Western states and the dominant media used such terminology.
This dialogue against Israel, and Erdoğan defining Hamas as a defender of their land and warriors, in a way, had been much more effective than a nuclear bomb during the war in progress. At this very moment, an allegation called "trade with Israel" was branded and magnified into a story that, in a sense, turned into slander against the AK Party, the conservative community and President Erdoğan, the leader of the oppressed.
The silence of the AK Party community and their distant and puny reaction to the incident can also be criticized here. Again, one of the most powerful aspects of the conservative community is that Haluk and Selçuk Bayraktar, the children of late Özdemir Bayraktar who pioneered the defense industry, brought Turkish military aviation technology to a similar level to the U.S., Russia and China in the production of unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs).
Turkish UCAVs, which Japanese American political theorist Francis Fukuyama claims have changed the strategy or rhetoric of warfare, have been hailed around the world and described as game-changing actors or elements in wars.
Yet those who accuse President Erdoğan, the leader of the oppressed, of not supporting Palestine have simultaneously launched a campaign against Bayraktars' defense company Baykar. In war strategy terms, this move meant attacking the most powerful front of the opponent, or enemy for that matter. I don't think only the Turkish opposition is behind this idea.
There is an opposition bloc in Türkye led by the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP). At the same time, there is the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), which considers Erdoğan's existence as a reason for its absence, a group that settled in Western states, especially in the U.S., and is constantly wishing the worst for Türkiye. Everyone knows that there are Western intelligence organizations behind this group, especially the CIA and Mossad.
Then we see that a meal cooked in these dark corners is, unfortunately, being served through the Turkish media, and some of Türkiye's new conservative parties are instrumental in such servings.
The Turkish nation has been subjected to massive invasions and immense confrontations throughout history, has seen coups and has spent the last 200 years struggling. The AK Party and Erdoğan have brought this nation back to the stage of history, and this nation will not backtrack on the path it has taken.
Those who know what changes Türkiye can muster when it takes the stage must have seen Erdoğan's leadership and Bayraktar's influence on the defense industry, so they have declared direct war on them. But the Turkish people know who the puppet master is and with whom they are fighting this struggle. Historically, when Turks have embarked on a campaign, they have never returned from it. As in the foundation of the Ottomans, we are on the threshold of a campaign again.
