UPDATE - Swiss envoy summoned over provocations targeting Türkiye’s president

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT BY TURKISH COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTORATE

By Dilara Hamit and Busra Nur Cakmak

ANKARA (AA) - Switzerland’s ambassador to Ankara was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Thursday and told that the provocations targeting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish flag in Zurich are unacceptable.

According to Turkish diplomatic sources, following the burning of the president in effigy and banners targeting Erdogan in the Swiss financial capital, Jean-Daniel Ruch was invited to the ministry by Mehmet Kemal Bozay, Türkiye’s deputy foreign minister and its permanent representative to the EU.

During the meeting, Ruch was told that the attacks targeting Erdogan were absolutely unacceptable and such attacks should not be tolerated.

During the meeting, the Turkish side also pressed for an investigation of the incident with the aim of identifying the perpetrators and promptly taking necessary actions.

Separately Türkiye’s Communications Directorate condemned “the heinous attack against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish flag by terrorists and their supporters in Zurich, Switzerland.”

“We also demanded the Swiss authorities to launch an investigation without delay, identify the perpetrators, and take necessary steps swiftly,” it said on Twitter.

The directorate ensured that Turkish authorities will follow the developments closely.

“We expect Switzerland not to allow such disgusting attacks and other attempts by terrorist groups to spread black propaganda,” it added.

Provocations targeting Erdogan and the Turkish flag were held this week in Zurich, Switzerland’s largest city. Both the Turkish flag and the president in effigy were burned in front of the UBS bank in Zurich by a group called the Zurich Revolutionary Strike Collective.