Turkey will keep supporting Crimean Tatars

(MENAFN) On Tuesday, May. 18 Turkey�s Foreign Ministry stated that the country will keep supporting the Crimean Tatar Turks. On the evening of May 18, 1944, a number of 250,000 �Crimean Tatar Turkish kinsmen were torn from their ancestral homeland and exiled under inhumane conditions,� said Tanju Bilgic, the ministry spokesperson, in a report. Bilgic emphasized that a great number of Crimean Tatars died in this "tragic event" and those who managed to stay alive were "forced to live yearning for their homeland." He noted: "77 years after the exile, Crimean Tatar Turks are challenged by the hardships created by the illegal annexation of Crimea. Turkey will continue to stand by its kinsmen in their struggle to overcome their aggrievement, attain peace and prosperity, and to protect their identities."