Distinction in travel journalism
Is independent travel journalism important to you?
Click here to keep it independent

24 Apr, 2018

Turkish FM warns of growing anti-Muslim sentiment in the West

Istanbul (UNA-OIC) 19 April 2018 – Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday that anti-Muslim sentiment was rising rapidly in the West, especially in Europe, Anadolu Agency reported.

Speaking at the first-ever World Muslim Minorities Summit held in the Turkish city of Istanbul, Cavusoglu said Muslims are seen as scapegoats in the West. “Anti-Muslim sentiment in the Western world and especially in Europe is rising rapidly,” he noted.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (Photo: Anadolu Agency)
 
The Turkish top diplomat said Muslims and immigrants are blamed for all economic, social and political problems in the West, adding that mosques are being attacked while Muslims are being persecuted.

“The reason that European countries are in crises is not Muslims and immigrants. Today, the policies of the EU are unsuccessful,” Cavusoglu stressed, saying the problems that Muslims face are not viewed as human rights issues. “As Turkey, we will not be silent […],” he added.

The World Muslim Minorities Summit opened in Istanbul on Monday amid President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s strong criticism of the anti-Islam sentiment in the West.

The four-day event, organized by the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs, brought together representatives, academics, experts and journalists from 100 countries where Muslim minorities live. It aims to highlight the internal problems of the communities and the challenges they endure in the face of Islamophobia.