MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli has disclosed that he received a kilim (rug) he said was commissioned by imprisoned PKK founder Abdullah Öcalan and delivered through a DEM Party delegation, while also recounting that he urged President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to become a symbolic “fifth” figure associated with Jerusalem. Bahçeli made the remarks in an interview with tv100 editor-in-chief Deniz Gürel and tv100 presenter Başak Şengül.
Bahçeli said the DEM delegation visited him in parliament on 12 December 2025 and presented the kilim, which he described as specially woven in Şanlıurfa at Öcalan’s request. He said he accepted the gift and told the delegation he was naming it the “27 February 2025 Peace and Democracy Kilim,” citing a tradition of giving kilims names.
In the same interview, Bahçeli described a Jerusalem-themed message he said he delivered to Erdoğan, linking it to Erdoğan’s long-running slogan that “the world is bigger than five.” Bahçeli said he told the president that Umar, Saladin and Yavuz Sultan Selim “conquered” Jerusalem and that Abdülhamid “revitalized” it, adding: “These four names are important and symbolic for Jerusalem. Why don’t you become the fifth?” He also said there is a historical link between Damascus and Jerusalem and argued that people in the region are looking for a strong leader they can trust.
Bahçeli also addressed his handshake last year with DEM lawmakers in the General Assembly hall, describing it as a spontaneous decision taken after Erdoğan’s opening-of-parliament address. He said he approached DEM deputies, believing “a step” needed to be taken “on behalf of Turkey,” and added that he offered condolences to a DEM lawmaker who had lost a relative.
He went on to defend a shift in language and framing that followed, saying he moved from referring to Öcalan as a “terrorist ringleader” to using the term “founding leadership,” and argued—using a “point A to point B” metaphor—that a direct approach was the fastest way to eliminate terrorism and redirect resources toward welfare and investment.
On domestic political figures, Bahçeli said veteran Kurdish politician Ahmet Türk should be reinstated. He recounted a conversation in which he said he calls Türk “ağa,” referenced a television series portraying Mardin, and then remarked that “something is missing”—a metropolitan mayor—before concluding that Türk should be returned to office.
Bahçeli also criticized a court decision involving Esenyurt Mayor Ahmet Özer, who received a 6 years 3 months prison sentence. Bahçeli said the ruling “was not correct,” arguing it was not appropriate while a “Terror-Free Turkey” process is being discussed, and in separate remarks reported by Turkish media, he framed the decision as conflicting with the aims of that process.
The interview also included comments on Syria, where Bahçeli said developments have been positive for Turkey and for Syria’s territorial integrity, and argued that the SDF/YPG should be fully removed from Syria, using an agricultural metaphor about invasive grass spreading across a field. He also rejected early-election speculation and criticized the main opposition CHP with a slogan built around four “S” references—Söğütözü, Silivri, Saraçhane and social media.
He also criticized the United States, accusing Washington of undermining the United Nations and citing Venezuela as an example, and used a metaphor suggesting the U.S. could fracture into 51 pieces. In additional comments during the interview, he argued that “human intelligence” should not be surrendered to artificial technology, said seriously ill prisoners could be tried without detention while receiving treatment, and described what he called a coded message aimed at Iran’s Turkic population: “Tractors—don’t plow the fields
