Ruling party MP apologizes over tweet insulting one of the founders of Turkish Republic

A ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy has caused consternation by retweeting an insulting post about former President ?smet ?nönü, one of the founders of the Turkish Republic, triggering reactions even from her own fellow party members.

Tülay Babu?çu, a deputy representing the western province of Bal?kesir, shared another Twitter user's message with the title "The friend of the Byzantines, traitor ?nönü" on Feb. 26, with a note accusing ?nönü of betrayal over the Lausanne Treaty of 1923, the founding treaty of modern Turkey.

The statement shared by Babu?çu accused ?nönü of treason "for agreeing to grant the Anzac region (Ar? Burnu) to the British Empire" during World War I.

The issue of Turkey's borders has become a heated topic after the AKP government was accused of abandoning Turkish soil with the recent ?ah Süleyman operation into northern Syria.

After sparking heavy criticism on social media and from opposition parties, Babu?çu deleted her tweet and apologized for sharing it in parliament.

"I present my apologizes to both the Republican People's Party [CHP] and Mr. ?smet ?nönü, one of the founders of our parliament and the Republic, about a retweet I made recently without realizing its content," she said, addressing parliament on Feb. 26.

"I really didn't have any negative intentions and it was caused by recklessness," she added.
?nönü's grandson, the mayor of Istanbul's ?i?li district, Hayri ?nönü, was among those who took to Twitter to slam Babu?çu over the incident.

"They keep making snipes about ?nönü because they cannot do it for Atatürk. I dare them to target Atatürk!" he told daily Hürriyet.

AKP deputy Babu?çu had made headlines recently with other controversial...