Gulf Today Report
A video of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dining with alcoholic drinks on the table is doing the rounds on social media.
The leaked video clip showed Erdogan talking to Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi over food with loca alcoholic drink Raki on the table.
The video sparked confusion and anger and reactions to what the Turks saw as a contradiction and duplicity of the man who presents himself as religious.
A social media user wrote, “The clip showed the presence of Raki at a table in front of the Turkish president and his entourage, while Turkish songs and melodies were being played…”
Raki is known as a popular alcoholic drink that is locally produced in some countries of Central and Southeastern Europe. It contains about 40% of alcohol.
The hashtag #RakiinthePalace was added to all the stories linked to Erdogan.
The tweets varied between angry and sarcastic.
A Turkish woman wrote on Twitter, "The economy is at the bottom, and our people are suffering with the corona pandemic, while you are eating and drinking Raki..."
Another expressed his anger saying: “How can a man who claims to be religious to sit at a table on which the Raki is served!”
Some people posted pictures of Turks looking for food from garbage bins with the image of Erdogan enjoying delicious food and alcoholic drinks.