The Founder of a Turkish State-Backed Art Fair Is Asking the Art World Not to Believe ‘Black Propaganda’ About Turkey’s Invasion of Syria

The founder and chairman of the Contemporary Istanbul art fair, Ali Güreli, has
written a strongly worded defense of Turkey’s invasion of
Syria.

Last week, the Turkish military
began undertaking air strikes against Kurdish-led militias in
northeast Syria to create what it calls a “safe zone” for Syrian
refugees. The operation, which has since led to the escape of
nearly 750 ISIS
militants, has been condemned by the European Union, which has
demanded that Turkey act with restraint.

Reports from the ground indicate that Turkish forces have been
targeting Kurdish settlements—a claim Güreli, whose fair is backed by the state, is
vigorously denying.

In a letter to fairgoers,
Güreli chides the
international media for “totally inaccurate reporting” and says the
primary target of the military operation is the People’s
Protection Units (YPG), a primarily Kurdish component of the
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Since October 2015, the YPG and SDF
have been fighting against the Islamic State and the government of
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country’s protracted civil
war.

“Turkey’s current operation does not target any ethnic group,
nation, or country; rather, it purely and simply aims to neutralize
the elements that pose a terrorist threat on a regional and global
scale as well as to our country,” he writes.

“This very ruthless organization that in the years has acquired
the fame of ‘baby-killer,’ is abducting children and young people,
using armed threat to recruit them as their
militant[s],” Güreli writes of the YPG, adding: “As is the
case in any asymmetric conflict, the black propaganda is on the
scene again with disinformation and fabricated news and comments.
We kindly ask you, our esteemed friend, that you do not take such
manipulative news, comments, and posts seriously, and not allow to
spread the information pollution.”

Contemporary Istanbul is sponsored primarily
by the Turkish Ministry of
Culture and Tourism and the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. It is also
backed by Turkish Airlines, which is owned in part by the
state.

artnet News shared Güreli’s
letter with Naren Briar, a photographer and human rights activist
who is the daughter of two Kurdish refugees.

“I can confidently say that what
you have received is malicious propaganda,” Briar says.
“These are unarmed religious and
ethnic minorities that Erdoğan, the dictator of Turkey, hopes to
kill in order to enact violent demographic changes.”

Earlier this month, President
Trump acceded to the Turkish military operation when he ordered the
withdrawal of US forces from the region. 

The post The Founder of a Turkish State-Backed Art Fair Is
Asking the Art World Not to Believe ‘Black Propaganda’ About
Turkey’s Invasion of Syria appeared first on artnet
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