First lady opens Turkish agency office in South Africa

By Burcu Calik

JOHANNESBURG

Visiting South Africa, first lady Emine Erdogan on Friday inaugurated the office of a Turkish agency and a library donated by Turkey’s state aid agency.

Emine Erdogan is accompanying Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the three-day summit of the BRICS powerhouse emerging economies -- Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa -- concluding today in the financial capital Johannesburg.

The first lady inaugurated the library of the Johannesburg-based Houghton Muslim Academy, which was opened with donations from the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA).

Around 350 students study at the academy, and the Turkish language is taught in the school.

Erdogan also opened the office of Turkey’s Maarif Foundation in South Africa, along with Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and his wife Sule Akar, and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and his wife Hulya Cavusoglu.

Turkey established the Maarif Foundation in 2016 to take over the administration of overseas schools linked to Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated July 2016 coup in Turkey, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

FETO is reportedly present in more than 150 countries around the world, through schools, NGOs, lobbyists, media outlets, and other companies.

By Burcu Calik

JOHANNESBURG

Turkey established the Maarif Foundation in 2016 to take over the administration of overseas schools linked to Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated July 2016 coup in Turkey, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

FETO is reportedly present in more than 150 countries around the world, through schools, NGOs, lobbyists, media outlets, and other companies.