Both Turkish supporters and other Middle Eastern communities celebrated the victory of Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the second round of the presidential elections Sunday night. With a majority of just over 52%, Erdogan, a devout Muslim who is said to have dreams of rebuilding the caliphate, will continue to serve as president for another 5 years and will be able to complete a quarter century of being in office. Meanwhile, the long-standing Turkish leader's victory was celebrated by Palestinians on the Temple Mount in a blatantly antisemitic display.
"A nation of 85 million has won," Erdogan told cheering crowds outside the presidential palace in Ankara. "You have once again given us the right to serve the nation and we will live up to this responsibility." Despite Erdogan’s victory, the elections in Turkey proved how divided the Turkish people are in their political opinions. In the first round of the elections, Erdogan failed to get half of the voters' votes and was therefore forced to compete in the second round against Kemal Kilicdaroglu. Even in the second round, the first time in his tenure that he was forced to a second round, the victory was not as overwhelming as Erdogan expected.
Thousands of Muslims who came to pray the Temple Mount on Sunday evening celebrated Recep Tayyip Erdogan's victory in the #TurkishElections.
— Israel National News - Arutz Sheva (@ArutzSheva_En) May 29, 2023
In a video from the scene, the crowd can be seen chanting: "O Jews…Muhammad's army will return to fight against you." https://t.co/zxwz7UdQyS
In an attempt to convey a message of unity, Erdogan said in his victory speech: "We are not angry with anyone or disappointed by anyone, now is the time to leave behind the differences and statements made during the election campaign and unite all around our national dreams." Despite the attempt, his call for unity sounded hollow after he mocked his opponent Kemal Kilicdaroglu and used the slogan chanted by his supporters during his many campaign events, "Bye-Bye Kemal".
The opposition leader did not explicitly concede his loss. He further complained about "the most unfair elections in recent years", and said that President Erdogan's party mobilized all the means of the state against him. Even before the results of the elections, Kilicdaroglu asked his supporters to help him convey his messages, claiming that the current administration is denying him the opportunity to communicate. Rights groups and observers have claimed that Erdogan's people who control the media made sure to limit the exposure of Kilicdaroglu's messages, all the while attributing false quotes and information to him.
Another group of people who were happy about Erdogan's victory the Arabs of East Jerusalem. After the announcement of the results, thousands gathered on the Temple Mount and shouted in support of the Turkish president who in recent years has been investing money to increase Turkey's influence on East Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Hatred is central to the Palestinian perception of the world. Moslem crowds at Judaism's core, The Temple Mount, celebrate Erdogan's win with chants of threats of death and destruction to Jews. https://t.co/4FTyjJEbwW
— Margie (@MargieInTelAviv) May 29, 2023
Those celebrating Erdogan’s victory on the Temple Mount shouted “Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the Army of Muhammad will Return”, recalling the battle in which Muhammad's men murdered the Jews of the city of Khaybar who refused to convert to Islam. For them, it seems, Erdogan is a leader who will restore Islamic control over the entire region and Jerusalem. The use of that specific quote was telling as it showed, yet again that the Palestinian people have less of a quarrel with Zionists or Israelis over borders and more of a hatred of Jews on a religious level.
