The Turkish charity that backs terrorist groups

Mohamed Abdelghaffar

Expansionism is the buzzword in Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s thinking.

Erdogan believes he can revive his country’s colonial past by bringing under Turkey’s control sovereign countries and stealing the wealth of these countries.

He tries to do this by all means, including by giving Turkish charities and terrorist groups backed by Turkey free hand in implementing the Turkish agenda.

Charities with a terrorist agenda

The Justice and Development Party regime has founded a large number of institutions and changed the missions of others. These institutions pose as charity ones, but in essence they offer logistical support to terrorist organizations around the world.

The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency, widely known as TIKA, is a case in point. The Aid and Solidarity Association for the Poor is another case in point.

These organizations have become major backers of terrorist organizations, even as they claim to be offering humanitarian support to the poor. They do their work under the supervision of the Turkish government.

The Aid and solidarity Association for the Poor is headed by a terrorist called Hasan Süslü. The association is active in Syria, Sri Lanka, Burkina Faso, Yemen and Afghanistan. The association is a strong backer of Tahrir al-Sham. It also offers support to al-Qaeda-affiliated groups and those loyal to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Dubious funds

Süslü lives in the southern Turkish city of Adana. He receives all the funds coming to the association from inside and outside Turkey. He then distributes this money to terrorist organizations around the world.

Ties with ISIS

Given all this, relations between the Aid and Solidarity Association for the Poor, on one hand, and ISIS, on the other, are very normal.

This is especially true after Turkey offered logistical and military support to ISIS.

Relations between the two sides became even stronger after a Turkish mosque imam joined ISIS in June 2014.

The imam is a close associate Süslü. Both were born in Adana. They worked together in the association which used to offer support to ISIS under a humanitarian cover.