The General Staff termed the criticism about Gen. Aydogan Babaoglu unjust as it said Babaoglu had received no information about the Aktutun attack until Saturday evening.

Statement found 'implausible' - 10 / 10 / 2008 12:12

The mainstream media slammed yesterday a statement defending the commander of the Turkish Air Forces posted on the military's Web site.

The military statement, posted late Wednesday, said the Turkish Air Forces commander, Aydogan Babaoglu, who faced criticism when he was seen playing golf soon after a deadly terrorist attack in Aktutun, was not informed of the deadly attack by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), until late Saturday, the second day of the conflict with the terrorists.

“Some media institutions have recently published news on Gen. Babaoglu. He didn't have any information about the martyrs killed fighting the terrorists in Bayraktepe region until late Saturday. Despite this fact, it is unfortunate and meaningful for some [media] to use the issue in order to harm the Turkish Armed Forces,” the statement said.

The statement, however, has attracted criticism from the mainstream media, which pointed out the contradiction in the statements delivered by Babaoglu and the military.

Babaoglu had said Tuesday that he coordinated every move of Turkish soldiers' counter-operations with his fellow officers in Ankara after he got news of the attack; whereas the military's statement said he did not even know about the attack until late on the second day of the PKK attack.

The terrorist attack lasted from midday last Friday until late the same day, but the General Staff held a press conference on the issue Saturday morning at 9 a.m.

Babaoglu defends himself

Daily Radikal called the statement “implausible” and “unconvincing,” and in its headline asked, “Does the General Staff expect us to believe its statement?”

Liberal daily Taraf led with the tongue-in-cheek headline “The golf player (Babaoglu) refuted the allegations much better.”

Babaoglu, meanwhile, defended himself yesterday in an interview with daily Milliyet, recalling his 50 years of experience and hardship in the Turkish army.

He said the published photographs of him playing golf in Antalya were intended to give the false impression he had ignored the deadly terrorist attack and continued playing golf even after he learned of it.

“It is an old habit of mine to play golf, but I have never failed to fulfill my duty by playing golf. I attended the golf tournament with permission from my commander. I learned the news late Saturday and we provided sufficient support from the air immediately,” he told Milliyet columnist Fikret Bila.

He also said his being in Antalya had been abused by the media and that the public was being misinformed, calling on citizens to pass judgment based on the true events.