Africans rising up against Turkish interference

Fatma Abdelghani

Turkey has been trying to gain presence and expand its influence in the African continent since the 1990s.

However, the same attempts gained a new momentum in recent years, given the ongoing struggle for influence in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea.

In Mauritania, there is growing public anger at the ambitions of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This anger was manifest in a recent demonstration dozens of Mauritanian citizens staged outside the Turkish embassy in the Mauritanian capital against Turkish interference in Mauritanian and Libyan affairs.

The Mauritanians also protested against Turkey’s continual support of terrorism and terrorist groups, especially the Muslim Brotherhood which is designated as a terrorist organization in many Arab countries.

The demonstrators also called for suspending financial and political support to Mauritanian politicians used by Turkey in controlling the African country and stealing its wealth.

Turkey started gaining presence in Mauritania in 2004 when Mauritanian authorities licensed the construction of schools affiliated to Hizment, the movement of Turkish cleric and opposition figure Fethullah Gulen.

The schools functioned as Turkey’s viceroy in Mauritania until 2011 when Turkey opened its embassy in the country.

At the end of 2016, the Turkish government asked Mauritanian authorities to hand over some of Gulen’s supporters after accusing them of participating in the failed coup attempt against Erdogan which took place a short time earlier.

Turkey also pressured Nouakchott to close down the schools, revoke their licenses and hand them over to the Turkish embassy.

Mauritania agreed to the Turkish demand in 2018. It transferred the ownership of the schools to some Mauritanian businessmen. However, Mauritania also granted political asylum to some of the Turkish staff members of the schools.

According to observers, Turkey uses Mauritania’s tough economic and financial conditions in influencing the decisions of this African state.