Altun Responds to Özgür Özel's Refugee Claim: Completely False

Turkey's Communication Director, Fahrettin Altun, responded to claims made by CHP Chairman Özgür Özel regarding the alleged transfer of refugees from Germany to Turkey. Altun dismissed these assertions, stating that there is no truth to the accusations that agreements exist for the transfer of third-country nationals in exchange for Eurofighter aircraft.

In a statement on social media, Altun highlighted that Özel reiterated this false information, which had previously been debunked by the Disinformation Combat Center on three separate occasions. He emphasized the lack of any agreement for sending individuals from countries such as Syria and Afghanistan who do not have legal residence in Germany to Turkey.

Altun recalled that the claims about an agreement between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to send 500 Turkish citizens without legal residency back to Turkey had also been categorically denied by the Foreign Ministry and the Disinformation Combat Center.

He pointed out that the narratives are being circulated to manipulate public opinion, stating that video evidence presented as support for these claims has previously been proven to be fake and unrelated to the alleged transfers. The audio was added to the visuals a posteriori, as confirmed by the Central reports.

Altun stressed that it is crucial for public figures like Özel to refrain from perpetuating misinformation and insisted that there is no possibility of Turkey accepting transfers of third-country nationals. The Turkish authorities firmly reject such claims.