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Erdogan sues ex-French diplomat for calling for ‘assassination’

April 25, 2017 at 11:33 am

Image of former French diplomat and researcher, Philippe Moreau Defarges [anonintel_adm/Twitter]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday filed a lawsuit against former French diplomat and researcher, Philippe Moreau Defarges, who called for him to be assassinated.

Erdogan’s lawyer Huseyin Aydin sent a four-page criminal complaint to the Ankara Public Prosecutor’s Office accusing Defarges of “attempting assassination and assault”.

Read: Former French diplomat considers assassinating Erdogan as an option

Defarges told French broadcaster BFM Business on Saturday that in the wake of a referendum in favour of a presidential system, assassinating Erdogan or civil war were both options for Turkey.

On Sunday, Defarges, a researcher at the French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), apologised for his controversial comments calling them “inappropriate” and expressing his “deepest sadness”.

According to Turkish laws, the case can be investigated and the defendant may be prosecuted for inciting to assassinate the President of the Republic, even if the person is not a resident of Turkey.