Turkish military responds to 'abrasive' criticisms

The Turkish Armed Forces has voiced it uneasiness over "abrasive" criticisms and reports particularly targeting Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar in recent days over a number of topics on the country's agenda. Some false reports and criticisms were intended to overshadow the army's success at a time it is fighting against terror organizations, military sources told Hürriyet. Among the reports and criticisms that created disturbance in the military were the lifting of the headscarf ban on female soldiers, Gen. Akar's foreign visits with the president and the top brass' visit to Kardak Islets in the Aegean Sea. About reports on a recent amendment by the Defense Ministry to lift the ban on female soldiers wearing headscarves, sources confirmed that the General Staff was not included in the process. Regarding criticisms on Gen. Akar's foreign visits accompanying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, sources described them as "intentional." Gen. Akar accompanied Erdoğan in his two foreign visits over the past six months to Pakistan and Gulf countries respectively. Sources said the official visits were "extremely natural and necessary" if required on the interests of the country. Some reports also suggested that Gen. Akar personally visited U.S. Chief of Joint Staff Gen. Joseph Dunford at the İncirlik Air Base in the southern province of Adana. The two soldiers met five times in Turkey over the past six months and all meeting places were picked by Gen. Akar, sources said. On criticisms about the top brass' visit to Kardak Islets in the Aegean Sea, sources said it was thought-provoking to make it a domestic affairs issue in a way that would "play into the hands of Greece" and called negative reports on the visit "malevolent." Sources also stated that it was disturbing to...