Erdogan slams compromising audio recording as 'fabricated' (video)  February 25, 2014 - 23:14 AMTPanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan has angrily condemned as fabricated an audio recording that appears to show him talking to his son about hiding large sums of money, BBC News reports. He said the recording, allegedly tapped and posted on social media, was a "treacherous attack". It appears to reveal Erdogan asking his son Bilal to dispose of millions of euros in cash from a house. The opposition has called for the prime minister's resignation. The recordings, which could not be independently verified, were said to be of four conversations dating back to Dec 17, when the sons of three ministers and business allies of the prime minister were detained in a high-level corruption investigation. The BBC says that, interestingly, neither the prime minister nor his party's spokespeople have denied that the voices on the recording belong to Erdogan and his son. Their statement so far is that their voices were "montaged" to implicate them. During the conversation, a voice can be heard discussing how to reduce the funds to "zero" by distributing them among several businessmen. At one point, the second voice says some 30 million euros ($40mln) remains to be disposed of. Erdogan's office issued a statement late on Monday, Feb 24 night saying the release of the recordings was part of a sustained campaign to unseat him. "Those who created this dirty conspiracy targeting the prime minister of the Republic of Turkey will be brought to account within the law," it said. Erdogan had a late-night meeting with the head of intelligence and then spoke out publicly on Tuesday, telling MPs from his AK Party the recording was a "shameless montage" and an attack on him personally. "We will bring legal action against these [wire-tapping] activities. If we let it go on, there will be no privacy for families, nor for the state in this country," he said. By late Tuesday morning, the recording had received more than 1.5 million hits on YouTube in less than 24 hours. The previous day, Turkish government officials said thousands of people, including senior politicians and other leading figures, had had their telephones illegally tapped over three years with the aim to blackmail and fabricate criminal cases. Two pro-government newspapers, Yeni Safak and Star, alleged that the taps were ordered by prosecutors said to be loyal to U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen. The prosecutors have denied the accusations. Related links:   Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Narek Manasyan wins European Boxing Championships silver for Armenia  Armenia’s Narek Manasyan (92kg) won Armenia’s second silver medal at the European Boxing Championships 2024 on April 28.Blinken urges Azerbaijan to continue negotiations with Armenia Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken has urged Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to continue negotiations with Armenia.Pashinyan, Blinken talk Armenia-U.S. ties over the phone Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a phone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on April 28, Pashinyan’s office reports.Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. |
