Ankara, Türkiye — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused opposition parties of fueling xenophobia and racism on Monday, a day after residents of a neighborhood in central Turkey set fire to Syrian-owned stores.
Unrest broke out in the Melikgazi region of central Kayseri province on Sunday night following reports that a Syrian refugee there had allegedly sexually harassed a 7-year-old Syrian girl. Outraged residents overturned some cars and set shops on fire, calling on Syrians to leave.
At least 67 people suspected of being involved in the violence were detained, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on the X social media platform.
In a televised speech on Monday, Erdogan accused opposition parties, which have advocated for the repatriation of refugees, of inciting violence.
“Nothing can be achieved by fueling xenophobia and hatred towards refugees in society,” Erdogan said. “One of the reasons for the tragic event that a small group in Kayseri caused yesterday is the poisonous speech of the opposition.”
When the Syrian civil war broke out in 2011, Turkey compassionately welcomed Syrian refugees, becoming the country that hosted the largest refugee population in the world. As the population grew and Turkey faced increasing economic difficulties, there was a rise in anti-immigrant sentiment. Opposition parties call for the repatriation of Syrians.
Authorities said the alleged abuser was arrested while the girl, her siblings and her mother were placed under state protection where they would receive psychological support.
The anti-Syrian violence in Kayseri sparked a backlash, in some cases violent, in opposition-controlled areas in northwestern Syria, including those controlled by Turkish-backed forces.
In the Syrian province of Aleppo, near the border with Turkey, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that dozens of people gathered at the main roundabout in the town of al-Rai to “prevent entry.” of Turkish convoys and trucks” and also prevented Turkish trucks from entering the city of al-Bab.
Videos circulating on social media showed young people and children carrying stones and sticks chasing a truck with Turkish letters. Protesters also expelled employees from a Turkish postal branch in the Syrian city of Azaz, the observatory said.
The blasts came amid rising tensions in areas controlled by the Syrian opposition over apparent moves towards a rapprochement between Ankara and Bashar Assad’s government in Damascus, including plans to open a crossing between government-controlled areas and those controlled by Turkish-backed opposition forces in Aleppo Province.
The Idlib-based “salvation government” of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, known as HTS – an insurgent group formerly linked to Al Qaeda that controls other parts of northwestern Syria – issued a statement calling on Turkey to “assume its rights.” legal and moral”. responsibilities to protect Syrian refugees.”
In 2021, similar anti-Syrian riots broke out in an Ankara neighborhood after a Turkish teenager was stabbed to death in a fight with a group of young Syrians. Hundreds of people chanting anti-immigrant slogans took to the streets, vandalizing Syrian-run shops and throwing stones at refugees’ homes.
Turkey hosts 3.6 million refugees, according to government figures, although some argue the actual population may be significantly higher.
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Ghaith Alsayed in Idlib, Syria, contributed.
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
