Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that ambassadors from ten countries including France, Germany and the United States who have called for the release of opponent Osman Kavala will be declared "
persona non grata
" .
Read also Erdogan threatens to expel ten ambassadors after a call to release an opponent
"
I ordered our Minister of Foreign Affairs to settle as quickly as possible the declaration of these 10 ambassadors as persona non grata
", affirmed the head of state during a trip to central Turkey, without however give a specific date. These ambassadors "
must know and understand Turkey,
" said Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accusing them of "
indecency
". "
They will have to leave
" the country "
if they no longer know it
", he added.
In a statement released on Monday evening, Canada, France, Finland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and the United States called for a "
just settlement. and quick of the affair
”Osman Kavala, Turkish businessman and patron who has become a pet peeve of the regime, imprisoned for four years without trial.
The threat had been hovering since Thursday
The Turkish head of state threatened Thursday to expel these ambassadors, without however taking concrete measures in this direction.
Turkey had summoned the ambassadors of these ten countries on Tuesday, deeming "
unacceptable
" their call for the release of Osman Kavala.
This 64-year-old opponent, a major figure in civil society, has been accused since 2013 by President Erdogan's regime of seeking to destabilize Turkey.
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He is particularly in the crosshairs for supporting anti-government protests in 2013 known as the Gezi movement.
Then he was accused of having sought to "
overthrow the government
" during the attempted coup of 2016. In December 2019, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordered his "
immediate release
" - in vain.
Osman Kavala will remain in prison at least until November 26, an Istanbul court ruled in early October, despite European threats of sanctions against Ankara.
The Council of Europe recently threatened Turkey with sanctions, which could be adopted at its next session (November 30 to December 2) if the opponent is not released by then.