Where’s the West’s outpouring of grief for Turkey?

After a triple suicide bombing at Turkey’s Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan wants the world to know that their tragedy is just as urgent and horrific as Paris or Brussels.

As usual, world leaders have condemned the attack in public and on social media, but according to the Independent, some are suggesting it would have attracted more world attention if it had happened somewhere in Western Europe.

In the wake of the alleged ISIS-linked attack, which killed at least 41 people and injured 239 more, President Erdogan said in a written statement that the world needed to unite to “fight the terrorists together.”

“The bombs that went off in Istanbul today could have gone off in any city in the world, in any airport,” he said. “I want everyone to understand that, to the terrorists, there is no difference between Istanbul and London, Ankara and Berlin, Izmir and Chicago.

“Unless we come together as all countries and as all people, and fight against the terrorists together, all possibilities that we can’t even dare think of right now will come true.”

But nevertheless, social media users wanted to know why the response from regular people around the world was so “muted.”

https://twitter.com/thereaIbanksy/status/747976762060005376

https://twitter.com/cupcakesandlime/status/748417169768124416

From Newsweek‘s hmed:

But the atrocities in Paris and Brussels are no different from Tuesday’s attacks in Istanbul. Today, Turkey is mourning its dead. Istanbul, like any other city, is the victim of a poisonous ideology that does not respect states, nations, borders, ethnicities or cultures.

There is little recognition of the immense challenges Turkey faces on a number of fronts, as well as the measures that it is taking to try to bring stability to the country.

The pre-Brexit scaremongering about Europe’s borders being flung open to millions of Turks who will descend on the continent when Turkey joins the EU reflects a growing perception that Turkey is a threat, not an ally.

Featured image: Bansky

Sky Palma

Before launching DeadState back in 2012, Sky Palma has been blogging about politics, social issues and religion for over a decade. He lives in Los Angeles and also enjoys Brazilian jiu jitsu, chess, music and art.

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