In his weekly statement on external developments, Sağlam have made important evaluations regarding the civil massacre in Yemen, France's efforts to create European Islam and Bangladesh's Rohingya policy.

Civil massacre in Yemen

Pointing out that in the latest report of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), it was reported that the war in Yemen caused an estimated 233,000 deaths in the first five years, Sağlam said: “131,000 of those people died due to lack of food, health services and infrastructure. In the country where the humanitarian drama is getting worse day by day, many aid programs have been closed, and the necessary aid funds for civilians have still not been provided.”

“In Yemen, which has been among the poorest countries in the world since the beginning of the civil war, the pandemic process could not prevent conflicts and many people lost their lives above the announced figures. The air strikes of the coalition led by Saudi Arabia, particularly by increasing civilian deaths, fuel instability in the country and prevent aid efforts. Despite the warning that tens of thousands of civilians will die due to hunger and pandemic, arms are still shipped to the region. Like Syria, Yemen is being dragged into a disaster that will perish a generation. For the stabilization of Yemen, all parties should be forced to negotiate and sanctions should be imposed on those who want the continuation of the conflict.”

France’s efforts to create European Islam

Touching upon France’s efforts to create European Islam, Sağlam stated: “The French interior minister said that 76 mosques in the country would be inspected and some could be closed as a result of the inspection. This statement shows that Macron's statement that "the enemy inside will be struggled" has been put into practice. France has a historical background to Islamophobia. This state policy has continued, sometimes through genocide, sometimes through violations of rights and racism against Muslims in the country.”

Sağlam continued his remarks as follows: “With these practices, France aims to adapt the Islamic creed, worship and message to its own standards. The French government, which targets mosques, Islamic values and Muslims at every opportunity, aims to create a religious understanding and "Muslim identity" under the name of reform in Islam by acting together with other European countries. Muslims should take a common stance against this limitless attempt in order to guarantee the freedom of religion and worship of their brothers living in Europe and to prevent interference in places of worship.”

Bangladesh’s Rohingya policy

Sağlam indicated that over 1 million Muslim Rohingya community, who fled their homeland and took refuge in Bangladesh due to the genocide committed by the racist Myanmar administration in Arakan lands, has been struggling with hunger, misery and disease for years.

“Few of them can benefit from UN aids. The vast majority of them are deprived of shelter, nutrition and health facilities to sustain their lives, and face all kinds of disaster risks. The international community is turning a blind eye to this misery in front of the world. The basic needs of the Rohingya are waiting to be met urgently,” Sağlam said.

Criticizing the Bangladesh government’s policy against Arakanese Muslims, Sağlam said: “The Bangladesh government started to transfer thousands of Arakanese Muslims to the island by building structures that look like a prison on the island called Bhasan Char, located off the coast of the Bay of Bengal. This is an isolation. Planning to settle at least 100,000 Arakanese Muslims on the island, it seems unlikely that the Bangladesh government will bring basic needs such as education, health and nutrition to this island. The Rohingyas, which the UN defines as the most suffering people in the world, lack any humanitarian treatment and means.”

Sağlam also urged the Islamic world to urgently address this issue and fight for the freedom of Arakanese Muslims to live in their own lands.

“It is important to meet the basic needs of Rohingyas living in Bangladesh until this return is provided. We invite Bangladesh to abandon this policy of isolation against human dignity,” Sağlam concluded. (ILKHA)