Here is part of a documentary made by Saadet Partisi, the Turkish political party currently led by Necmettin Erbakan. It explains the counter-narrative championed by Islamists in Turkey. Although Erbakan is a bit extreme, the enemies he identifies- materialism, foreign domination, and Zionist conspiracy- strike cords with many Turks.

Erbakan is the godfather of modern political Islam in Turkey. He formerly lead Refah Partisi, which won a plurality with 21% of the vote in the 1995 Turkish parliamentary elections. Erbakan briefly served as prime minister in 1996 and 1997, before the Turkish state forced forced him to step down and banned his party. Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Abdullah Gul both rose to prominence in the 1990s through Refah Partisi.

After being shut down, the Refah Party's leaders split into two groups, with the "moderates"  (or pragmatists, depending on your level of cynicism) forming AKP. Although nobody knows how much Erdogan's actual beliefs have changed since the 1990s, it is nevertheless informative to understand the worldview from which Erdogan began his career in politics.

To see what Erbakan says about Erdogan since their split, check the excerpt from an interview included after the jump.

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This is an excerpt from an interview conducted by the Pan-Arab newspaper Asharq al-Aswat. For the full interview, go here.

Q: Erdogan was a member of the Welfare party (Refah Partisi) and he left it to form the AK party with Abdullah Gul, do you feel that he has fled your school. In your view, has he succeeded or failed?

A: Yes, Erdogan is a failure as a student and he has fled through the school’s back door. He attended school but did not pay attention to the lessons. Despite the fact that he was educated in religious seminaries, his actions prove otherwise. He states that Muslim urbanization cannot compete with Western urbanization, while the Prophet Mohammed says that religion is capable of transcending everything. Is any knowledgeable person capable of saying that? Erdogan is inclined towards the EU and is complying with its demands and at the same time he maintains that an Islamic Union is not possible. Is this reasonable? Are we serving Islam or Zionism? [portion omitted]

Q: Can you tell me more about the motives that drove Erdogan to split from the Refah party to form a new and rival party? 

A: We all know the founder of Israel is Theodor Hertzl and Jewish thinker and activist Haim Nahum and former US national security advisor Zbigniew Brezinski. What did Brezinski say? He said when we view the Islamic world; we see two types of people; the people of the world and the people of religion, we want to weaken the latter and collaborate with the former. You ask why Erdogan broke away from us and set up a new party? My answer is Brezinski’s words. Tayyip Erdogan did not establish the party by his own initiative; he was given orders to found the party. And why has Erdogan become a puppet in this project? Because he is weak with regards to location, money, leadership and position.

Q: What is the nature of your relationship now with Mr. Erdogan? Are you still in contact with one another, for example?

A: Tayyip phones me sometimes to inquire about my health but that means nothing. “How are you” and “how are you doing” are not important, what is important is the return of the true Islamic consciousness.

Q: Would you say you are dissatisfied with Mr. Erdogan’s policies?

A: I am dissatisfied with his actions, behavior and the direction in which he is headed. We complain because he is leading the Turkish people towards big problems. We are not satisfied with his loyalty and partnership with Zionism in some aspects. Why did Tayyip Erdogan dispatch Turkish forces in Lebanon within the framework of United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations in Lebanon? To disarm Hezbollah.