First reaction from İmamoğlu to the dismissal of lieutenants: 'A decision that will go down in history with shame'

The disciplinary process initiated after the lieutenants drew their swords and said, 'We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal,' has been completed. The Ministry of National Defense announced that 3 disciplinary supervisors and 5 lieutenants have been given the 'Dismissal from the Armed Forces' penalty.

The Ministry of National Defense (MSB) announced the decision regarding the lieutenants with the following words: 'Within the scope of the administrative and disciplinary investigations initiated following the images reflected to the public after the Military Academy Flag Handover and Graduation Ceremony; the High Disciplinary Board of the Ministry of National Defense imposed the "Dismissal from the Armed Forces" penalty on 3 disciplinary supervisors, and the High Disciplinary Board of the Land Forces imposed the same penalty on 5 lieutenants, in accordance with the mandatory provisions of the Turkish Armed Forces Disciplinary Law, the Regulation on High Disciplinary Boards of the Turkish Armed Forces, and other aforementioned legislation.'

The first reaction to the decision came from Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.

Making a statement via his X account, İBB Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu used the following expressions:

"Another decision that will go down in history with shame.

Turkey's most successful lieutenants have been dismissed from our Turkish Armed Forces for saying, 'We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal.' Our army is the army of our country's founder, our eternal Commander-in-Chief, Veteran Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. This decision is a disrespect to the memory of our soldiers who have fought for the unity and integrity of our country since the War of Independence; it has hurt our veterans and caused our martyrs to turn in their graves.

We stand with our lieutenants; we will not leave them alone."