Turkish President Erdogan to Discuss Paris Olympic Controversy with Pope Francis
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Tuesday that he intends to speak with Pope Francis about the "immorality committed against the Christian world" at last week's Paris Olympic opening ceremony.
"Disgraceful scene in Paris offended not only the Catholic world, not only the Christian world, but also us as much as them," Erdogan said in an address in the capital Ankara, according to Anadolu.
"Immorality displayed at the opening of the Paris Olympics once again highlighted the scale of the threat we face," he added.
The opening ceremony of the Olympics drew significant backlash for a drag queen parody of Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, which many viewed as disrespectful to religious beliefs.
Erdogan stated: "An international sporting event that is supposed to unite people unfortunately opened with hostility to humanity and the values that make human beings human."
Appreciating Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's criticism of the opening ceremony, the Turkish president said more leaders and politicians should have spoken out against it.