Turkish Foreign Ministry condemns Egypt killings as 'unacceptable'
ANKARA
A supporter of Egypt's ousted President Mohamed Morsi comforts a relative of a man injured during clashes with security forces in a field hospital in Nasr City, Cairo, July 27. AP photo
The Turkish Foreign Ministry has expressed its condolences and harshly condemned last night's deadly crackdown in Egypt, which Muslim Brotherhood sources say killed more than 100 supporters of the ousted President Mohamed Morsi."We strongly condemn this serious and unacceptable incident. We are following with concern the latest developments and the possibility that the casualties might increase. Resorting to violence and guns against peaceful protesters and opening fire against the [Egyptian] people has wounded the public's conscience," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement issued July 27.
"It is clear that these sort of interventions, causing deaths, will not help Egypt's internal peace. Opening fire on demonstrators protecting their own democratic will is not acceptable with respect to human morality," it added.
The statement also called on the Egyptian security forces to show more responsibility in the current process. "The latest events at Rabaa al-Adawiya Square have shown the importance of allowing peaceful protests to take place. This attitude against civilian protests will not benefit the transition to democracy and is likely to cause unforeseeable consequences for all Egyptian people," the statement said, calling for an "inclusive" political process.
'Blow against Egypt's democracy affects whole Middle East'
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu also condemned via twitter the bloodshed in Egypt. “A blow against Egyptian democracy will affect the entire Middle East. Egypt’s rise is the whole Middle East’s rise,” he wrote on his Twitter account, adding that he was holding talks with his counterparts along with Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) head Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu.
“I invite all officials to prudence. We will stand by our Egyptian brothers’ the same way as we did until today.”
The latest killings came at a time when Ankara was expected to send a new envoy to Cairo, as a sign of Turkey's desire to mend relations with the interim government.
