Erdogan, electoral ally discuss criticism, assassinated nationalist figure’s case

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli recently met to discuss steps toward political normalization.

One major topic was the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Ozgur Ozel’s criticism of the People’s Alliance. Erdogan stated that attacks on the alliance under the guise of fostering dialogue with the opposition would not be tolerated.

Another significant issue discussed was the ongoing debates surrounding the Sinan Ates murder case. Bahceli expressed discomfort with linking this incident to the MHP, while Erdogan emphasized the strict adherence to legal procedures.

He was quoted as saying, “Whatever needs to come out, let it come out.” Bahceli supported this stance, saying, “Let’s pursue this to the end. We want this too.”

On Dec. 30, 2022, Ates, a nationalist figure in Turkish politics and former head of the Grey Wolves, a Turkish far-right nationalist movement and youth wing of MHP, was attacked and killed by two armed assailants on a motorcycle as he and his friend Selman Bozkurt were leaving a building in the Kizilirmak neighborhood of Ankara’s Cankaya district. This development had a great repercussion in Turkish politics, and the MHP’s links to this incident were a matter of debate.