Turkish president claims he taught Senator Graham “a lesson” for anti-Turkey remarks

Karwan Faidhi Dri

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — On his way back to Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Turkish journalists that he taught Senator Lindsey Graham “a lesson” for his comments against the Turkish invasion of northern Syria. 

His remarks follow a two-day visit to Washington DC, in which he met with US President Donald Trump and a number of senators.

Five Republican US senators, known for their strong criticism of Turkey's Operation Peace Spring against Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, were invited to the Trump-Erdogan meeting. 

Prior to his trip to the US, the Turkish president said that he would try to revert the stance of those Americans who see the Turkish operation in Syria as an invasion. 

Erdogan pulled out his iPad to show the senators and US president a video depicting SDF commander Mazloum Abdi as a murderer of Turkish civilians. 

The video has not been published before. 

The video shows Turkey’s conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which seeks cultural and political rights for Kurds in Turkey . Turkey claims that the SDF is the Syrian offshoot of the PKK, despite SDF claims to the contrary. 

The four and a half minute-long video blames the deaths of those killed during incidents in the video on Mazloum Abdi, introduced as Ferhat Abdul Sahin or the “spiritual son” of the PKK’s jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan. 

It also includes the image of Ocalan with a young man, believed to be Abdi, swimming in a pool. 

The video which was shared by the Turkish Presidency’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun, also compared the Kurdish commander to Islamic State (ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, stating that they are “the same.”

However, a source who was present in the room told US outlet Axios that Erdogan’s video “was unpersuasive”. 

Senator Linsdey Graham is reported to have asked Erdogan “"Well, do you want me to go get the Kurds to make one about what you've done?"

SDF Spokesperson Mustafa Bali reacted to the video on Twitter, saying that the content has nothing to do with the SDF or its commander. 

Graham, who has strongly opposed the Turkish offensive against the Kurdish fighters who were key US allies in the fight against ISIS, continued referring to Turkey’s operation as an “invasion” during the meeting.

He later said in a tweet that he “appreciate[s]” the invitation, and described the meeting as “frank, candid, and I hope, over time,[it] will prove to be productive.” 

On his flight en route to Ankara, Erdogan told Turkish journalists, who accompanied him to the US, that he taught Senator Graham a lesson. 

“He has been to Turkey and we listened to a classical music concert together,” said Erdogan, referring to a January 2019 concert in Ankara.

“He used to make friendly comments on Turkey. Then, all of a sudden he made a strange turn and became a spokesperson for anti-Turkey fronts,” he added, reported state-owned Anadolu Agency (AA).  

Asked if he told this to the senator himself, Erdogan replied, “I told him what was necessary. Today, he learned his lesson.”