Press Release
Normalization with Assad is a Clear Betrayal in the Eyes of Allah and His Messenger and in the Eyes of the Ummah
(Translated)

President Erdogan said that he had a telephone call with Putin yesterday and they talked about the Syrian issue. Erdogan also indicated that the defence ministers of Russia, Türkiye and Syria started a new process with the meeting they held in Moscow last week, where he said, "We will gather our foreign ministers together as three, and then we will meet together as leaders." And since Erdogan knows that meeting with Assad is a clear betrayal of Allah (swt) and His Messenger (saw) and in the eyes of the Ummah, he sought to relieve the pressure of Muslims by prolonging the time of this process, as he stated in Sochi in August that Putin wants him to meet with Assad. Then the Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu announced that there were talks between Türkiye and Syria at the intelligence level and that the leaders could meet during the process.

The Turkish step of normalization with the Assad regime is a continuation of the previous steps taken in Syria and part of the political solution determined by America. Because from the moment America saw that the events in Syria were out of the control of the butcher Assad, it sought to keep him alive by giving a special role to Iran and Turkey, among the countries in the region. Although Türkiye provided the necessary humanitarian aid to the Syrian refugees, it tried to protect the butcher regime from the beginning, as required by the role provided to it by America. Likewise, the side that Türkiye followed was clear from the beginning of the revolution, when it sent then Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to Damascus, when it organized conferences in Istanbul, Ankara, and Antalya, and when it worked to organize the Syrian opposition. Was it not the Erdogan government that worked to overthrow the leaders of the groups in Syria within the framework of the mechanism of operational cooperation, and undermined the revolution by ensuring the participation of these people in the Geneva conferences, and with Operation Euphrates Shield ensured the fall of Aleppo, which was in a critical situation? Was it not the Erdogan government that deceived the short-sighted rebels by surrounding Idlib with watchtowers by saying, "We will protect you from the Democratic Union Party/People's Protection Units"? Was it not Erdogan who sat first in Astana and then in the Sochi talks at the same table and cooperated with Iran and Russia, who shed the blood of Muslims?

Therefore, we are not surprised that these two nations, which have been cooperating in a secret and dirty way since the beginning of the revolution, have started open talks. We are not surprised that the liberated lands will be completely returned to the control of the regime, opposition groups will be eliminated, and even reconciliation will take place with the Democratic Union Party, which is collaborating with the regime. It is also not surprising that Türkiye does not hesitate to push refugees back into the arms of Assad for electoral reasons. What is really surprising and even sad is the inability to realize all these machinations and conspiracies, and the inability to see the nets woven by the pro-Western regimes over the heads of Muslims, and that despite everything that happened, they still expect good intentions from them!

What Türkiye must do to avoid all these mistakes is to put an end to the wrong policies it has been pursuing for years, in line with America's plans. Normalization with the Assad regime, which killed a million Muslims, extended its control over all parts of the country under the pretext of territorial integrity, left more than two million people living as families in Idlib at the mercy of the regime, and forced refugees in Türkiye to return to Syria, will only bring anger from Allah (swt). These steps, which are said to be in the interest of the Syrian people, will not have real gains in terms of politics, economy, military and security, and time will reveal that clearly. The Muslims in Türkiye, who have so far supported the Ash-Sham revolution and embraced the refugees, should oppose this betrayal with all their might, and they should not agree to dialogue with Assad under any circumstances and conditions, and they should remind the rulers of the warning of our Lord, when He (swt) says:

[وَلا تَرْكَنُوا إِلَى الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا فَتَمَسَّكُمُ النَّارُ]

“And do not be inclined to the wrongdoers or you will be touched by the Fire. For then you would have no protectors other than Allah, nor would you be helped.” [TMQ Hud:113].

Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir in Wilayah Turkey