Turkish police arrest Victory Party leader after accusing Erdogan of alienating Turks from religion more than a crusade

An Istanbul court has ordered the release of Victory (Zafer) Party leader Ümit Özdağ, less than 24 hours after his arrest on charges of inciting hate speech, insulting the president and making threats to him.

The decision to release Özdağ came after he was transferred from the Istanbul Security Directorate to the Palace of Justice, while a delegation from the CHP party headed by its leader Özgür Özel arrived at the Palace of Justice to receive Özdağ.

Turkish police arrested the leader of the Zafer Party, Ümit Özdağ, while he was having dinner at a restaurant in the capital, Ankara, on Monday evening.

The arrest came after Özdağ said, speaking about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, “No crusade can make the Turkish nation deist, atheist or Christian… During Erdogan’s era, large segments of the Turkish nation began to turn away from their religion because of those who deceived God… During Erdogan’s era, the percentage of atheists increased to more than 16%”.

“Erdogan is harming the Turkish nation’s faith by dividing the people into sects, and by bringing millions of refugees and fugitives to Anatolia, he is destroying the culture of the Turkish people,” he added.

“What is happening is actually the fascism of the AKP,” he added.