UPDATE - Turkey deported nearly 9,000 foreign terrorists

UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS FROM ERDOGAN

By Murat Paksoy

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey has deported nearly 9,000 foreign terrorists so far, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the Group of 20 Summit on Sunday.

“Although we were left alone, we have nabbed nearly 9,000 foreign terrorist fighters and sent them back to their countries,” Erdogan said at the virtually organized summit.

“We are the only NATO country fighting Daesh/ISIS in Syria on the frontline,” Erdogan added.

Turkey does its best to “eliminate the terrorist threat, prevent conflicts and strengthen stability,” in the region, the president added.

The G20 Leaders' Summit kicked off in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh on Saturday.

Saudi Arabia is chairing the two-day summit which is being held virtually in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

- Refugees during coronavirus

On coronavirus, Erdogan said that the pandemic has deepened many problems, especially poverty and inequality.

“Especially our African brothers and sisters and Asian and Latin American friends are facing serious difficulties,” he added.

Noting that refugees and forcibly displaced persons are the most vulnerable, Erdogan said: “These people are forced to struggle against the intentionally fueled anti-Islamism and xenophobia, plus economic difficulties.”

“None of us can ignore this dire picture,” he said. “We must keep redirecting humanitarian aid to war-affected areas and populations at risk.”

Erdogan said that Turkey is the country hosting the highest number of refugees in the world for the last six years.

“We host more than four million refugees in our country, most of them Syrians,” he said.

Turkey also provides humanitarian aid and protection to millions of needy people in Idlib and many other places within the borders of Syria, he added.

“These numbers are more than the population of most of our major cities,” he said.

Turkey continues its efforts to ensure that “those who take refuge in our country live in harmony with our community and with dignity,” the Turkish president said.

“Moreover, we continue these efforts with determination, even though the promises of support made to us have not been kept so well,” he said.

“We now expect everyone to take responsibility and share a fair burden and responsibility,” he added.