"We advise them to listen to the cries of their citizens who poured into the squares for the oppressed Palestinians"

President of Religious Affairs Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş attended the 4th Meeting of the President of Religious Affairs and Religious Administrations of the Member Countries of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) held in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan.

Giving a speech at the meeting, which started with the recitation of the Holy Quran, President Erbaş stated that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Binali Yıldırım, Chairman of the Organization of Turkic States Council of Elders delegation, brought their greetings and stated that they are brothers and sisters belonging to a common history, a common culture, the same language and the same religion.

Stating that the reason why they came together today is not only language, history, culture, and belief, but also that they want to build a fair, safe, and prosperous future together, President Erbaş said, "It is our desire to join forces to improve our prosperity, increase our peace and strengthen our brotherhood. This common denominator and our ideal of building our future together necessitate us to cooperate in many areas. In particular, the serious issues that our region and the whole world have faced in recent years clearly reveal the necessity of further the bond, cooperation and coordination of the brotherly Turkic states with each other."

"The task of bringing the values of Islam together with humanity is under the responsibility of Muslim scholars"

Pointing out that the Organization of Turkic States activity has turned into a strategic union that is increasing day by day, President Erbaş continued his words as follows:

Our world is going through one of the most difficult periods in its history under the siege of huge problems such as wars, poverty, radicalism, and terrorist acts. More than ever, humanity needs Islam's universal values, embracing principles, calls for brotherhood, and the ethics of solidarity and sharing. The task of bringing these values of Islam together with humanity is under the responsibility of Muslim scholars. Islam is a religion that stands against all kinds of extremism and terrorist activities. The proof of the existence of the Islamic Ummah is moderation, and the most important basis of our statement is this verse. In the verse, the Almighty Allah (swt) said, 'And it is thus that We appointed you to be the community of the middle way so that you might be witnesses to all mankind and the Messenger might be a witness to you."

"They are trying to create artificial divisions based on the differences of Muslims"

Pointing out that the association of Islam and Muslims with terrorism is a reflection of the hostility to Islam produced by global imperialism for its own perverted ambitions, President Erbaş talked as "As you know, the imperialist powers, which have wanted to maintain their colonial order for centuries, have always created enemies for themselves. They have chosen Islam as the enemy and the other of this century. In this context, we all know that the Western powers are trying to create artificial divisions over the differences of Muslims in order to maintain their hegemony over the Islamic geography for the last few centuries and to protect the interests they have obtained from it."

Stating that the West has used the terrorist organizations it has established as a basis of legitimacy for operations, occupations and massacres against the Islamic geography, especially in the last quarter century, President Erbaş underlined that ISIS, which emerged in Syria and Iraq and later spread to many Islamic towns, is the clearest example of this.

“Those who associate Islam with terrorism are the Western countries that are the perpetrators of the world's worst terrorist crimes."

Stating that Islam has never been the source of terrorism and that Muslims have never been the cause of terrorism, President Erbaş said, "In fact, those who associate Islam with terrorism are the Western countries, which are the perpetrators of the world's worst terrorist crimes. Because, with their technology and weapon superiority, they are carrying out unprecedented massacres by trampling on all kinds of humanitarian and moral values in Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia and Yemen, especially in Gaza, Al-Quds, Palestine."

"We recommend that those who associate Islam and Muslims with terrorism should first look in the mirror"

President Erbaş continued his words as follows:

"The international humanitarian organisations, ideologies and policies that claim a more peaceful world have lost all credibility because they have always been hypocritical. In fact, they no longer have any credibility even in the eyes of their own people. Therefore, we recommend that those who associate Islam and Muslims with terrorism should first look in the mirror. We advise those countries, the imperialist countries, to hear their own people pouring into the squares and streets against the murders they have committed, and to listen to the cries of their own citizens who shed tears for the oppressed Palestinians and shout "Stop this massacre".

I believe that those who remain insensitive to the cries of the Palestinians today just because they are Muslims, and even those who support Israel, which massacres all Muslims in Gaza, regardless of whether they are babies, children, women, the elderly or the sick, will be condemned to disgrace forever in the conscience of all humanity, especially their own people."

"We must work with all our strength on issues that will be for the good and benefit of Muslims and all humanity"

"Saying, “At a time when anti-Islamism is supported as much as possible, our duty is to develop a consciousness of violence that will enable us to resist all kinds of threats and dangers," President Erbaş talked as "Our duty is to reinforce the awareness of acting jointly on a global scale for the solution of our problems. Our duty is to create a common future perspective in every field from science to art, from education to culture, from agriculture to health, from security to energy. Our duty is to work with all our strength in cooperation on issues that will be for the good and benefit of Muslims and all humanity."

"Islam is a religion of peace that forbids Muslims from sedition and corruption"

Pointing out that humanity must listen to the universal truths and warnings of Islam if it wants to prevent wars, violence, terrorism and all kinds of radicalism, President Erbaş said, "Since Islam is a religion of peace that considers the killing of a single innocent person as the murder of all humanity and forbids its followers from all kinds of sedition and corruption. Therefore, the way to truly fight against all forms of extremism, radicalism, fanaticism and terrorism is to come together around the principles and values of Islam."

"We must fight against terrorist groups that exploit the concepts of Islam"

Pointing out that there is a need to work devotedly more than ever in order to bring the messages of justice, fairness and peace of Islam to humanity, President Erbaş said, "At this point, we, as the religious institutions and organizations of Muslim countries and communities, must first come together sincerely to negotiate our own problems and find solutions to them. We must fight more consciously against terrorist groups that exploit the concepts of Islam, the religion of peace and mercy, and illegal structures that cause corruption in our geography by claiming to take their reference from religion, and we must demonstrate that they cannot be connected with Islam through our discourse, actions and scientific studies."

Pointing out the importance of education in terms of change and development of societies, President Erbaş talked as "Therefore, we should further strengthen our cooperation in the field of education. It is extremely important that we work together in areas such as experience sharing, curriculum, resource, and material development. I believe that our corpus of knowledge and wisdom, which we have inherited from our history, and our acquis of culture and civilization is the most valuable opportunity we have in terms of producing solutions not only to our own problems, but also to the problems of all humanity."

"Your duas have always given us strength and courage"

Expressing his gratitude to the Organization of Turkic States member countries for their loyalty and sacrifices during the earthquakes that took place on February 6, 2023, President Erbaş said, "Your support in the earthquake disaster in which thousands of our people died and thousands of others got injured are unforgettable. Your prayers have always given us strength and courage."

In addition to President of Religious Affairs Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş, Head of Administration of Uzbekistan Muslims and Chief Mufti Nuriddin Haliknazarov, Secretary General of Organization of Turkic States Kubanıçbek Ömüraliyev, Head of Administration of Caucasian Muslims of Azerbaijan Allahşükür Paşazade, Head of the Spiritual Administration of the Kazakhstan Muslims and Chief Mufti Nauryzbay Taganuly, Head of the Spiritual Administration of the Kyrgyzstan Muslims and Chairman of Ulema Council Abdimanap Masaliyev and Chief Mufti of Turkmenistan Yalkap Hojaguliyev also attended the meeting.