Turkish President Erdogan says Germany harbouring terrorists

Turkish President Recep Erdogan lashed out at German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday over her criticism of the detention of journalists, saying "Germany harbors terrorism", Turkish Hurriyet Daily reported.

"You (Germany) are aiding terror. That terror will hit you like a boomerang. We have no expectations from you, but you will be remembered by history for harbouring terror," Xinhua news agency quoted Erdogan as saying in a speech in the Turkish capital Ankara.

"We are concerned that Germany, which has been taking members of terrorist organisations such as the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) under its protection, will become a backyard of the Fethullahist Terror Organisation (FETO)," he added.

"If Germany doubts whether FETO is a terrorist group, I invite them to come and visit the Turkish Parliament and Special Forces buildings, which were bombed on July 15," he added.

Merkel said on Wednesday that Turkish authorities' actions against freedom of opinion and the press are "highly alarming", referring to the detention of senior staff of daily Cumhuriyet.

Murat Sabuncu, the Editor in Chief of Cumhuriyet, Turkey's oldest secularist newspaper, and at least 12 other executives and journalists from the daily were detained on the morning of October 31.

--IANS

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