Combating the Rise of Anti-Semitism

In past issues of this update, I have warned about Turkey’s slow but steady drift away from secular government and toward Islamic fundamentalism under the increasingly authoritarian rule of President Recep Erdoğan.

This accelerated greatly this week in the aftermath of a failed military coup attempt. Last weekend, a faction within Turkey’s military attempted to oust Erdoğan but the effort was quickly foiled by forces loyal to the current president.

Calling the coup attempt "a gift from God," Erdoğan has used it as a justification for purging Turkey’s major institutions—the military, government agencies, the judiciary, the media, and universities—of enemies and opponents.

Tens of thousands of political opponents have been removed from their positions, suspended, or arrested as Erdoğan solidifies his hold on a nation seemingly headed toward dictatorship. The speed with which the Erdoğan administration produced a list of the ousted suggests to some that it was in place before the coup. Speculation increases as some reports question whether Erdoğan may have staged the coup himself to validate the purge and take a more firm hold on the reins of his rule.

The Islamification of Turkey’s government and institutions has clear and sobering implications for Turkey’s large Jewish population. As a recent report in Commentary Magazine noted:

Virulent anti-Semitism is deep-rooted in Erdoğan’s ruling party. Turkish media broadcasts anti-Semitic tropes and incitement, and a Turkish translation of Mein Kampf became a best-seller in the wake of Erdoğan’s victory.

Turkey is now over a precipice and in free fall. Erdoğan seeks to impose his religious ideology on the state and brooks no opposition. Part of that ideology is deeply anti-Semitic. Countries change. Turkey is no longer the tolerant, multi-religious republic it once was. For Turkey’s Jews, the situation is going to get much worse, and it may not get better.

Here at Jewish Voice, we will continue to monitor this troubling situation and bring you analysis in the light of biblical prophecy.

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