Erdogan accused of of dismissing Morocco's Arab, Amazigh identity in World Cup win message

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s congratulatory tweet to Morocco following its World Cup quarter-final win has sparked controversy online.

Erdogan congratulated the Atlas Lions on Saturday for their historic 1-0 win against Portugal, but angered activists as he failed to recognise the victory as an Arab or Berber one.

The football match saw Morroco become the first ever Arab, Berber and African team to reach the semi-finals of the global tournament.

أهنئ من أعماق قلبي المنتخب المغربي الذي يعتبر أول فريق إفريقي يحقق إنجاز الوصول لدور نصف نهائي كأس العالم، كما أبارك لجميع أشقائنا المغاربة هذا الإنجاز. 🇲🇦🇹🇷

— رجب طيب أردوغان (@rterdogan_ar) December 10, 2022

"I congratulate from the bottom of my heart the Moroccan national team, which is the first African team to achieve… reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup, and I also congratulate all our Moroccan brothers for this achievement," Erdogan tweeted in Arabic.

Comments soon came flooding in from activists and social media influencers who were disappointed by Erdogan’s lack of recognition for the "Arab achievement" and questioned his intentions.

"Mr President, you did not mention that it was an Arab-Berber achievement, so were you deliberately ignoring it? We know that you choose your words carefully," writer Samer Jaradat tweeted.

سيادة الرئيس؛ لم تذكر أنه إنجاز عربي أمازيغي، فهل تجاهلها متعمد؟ نعلم أنكم تنتقون كلماتكم بعناية.

— سامر جرادات (@samerjaradat88) December 10, 2022

“This congratulatory message is just so that he can say the word ‘African’,” journalist Saeed Al-Naji wrote. 

هالمباركة فقط عشان يقول "افريقي" 😄

— سعيد الناجي (@SaeedAlNaji) December 10, 2022

Others corrected Erdogan, highlighting Morocco’s position as members of the Arab League, as Arabic speakers and calling for him to recognise that the rulers of the North African country are also Arab.

“Why didn't you write this in African, Mr. President, so that they could understand you!!,” activist Muhammed al-Akash wrote

أول فريق عربي*
لماذا لم تكتب بالإفريقي يا سيادة الرئيس كي يستطيعوا فهمك!! لكنكم تعلمون أن 70 بالمئة من سكان المغرب من العرب وهم عضو في الجامعة العربية وملكهم عربي ولغتهم عربية لذلك استخدمتم اللغة العربية. شكرا لكم 🇲🇦

— محمد العكش|Syr (@aloksh208) December 10, 2022

“But you know… they are members of the Arab League, and their king is an Arab, and their language is Arabic, so you used the Arabic language,” al-Akash added.

Morocco carrying the African continent, the Arab and the Muslim world 🇲🇦 pic.twitter.com/udZ0ykgfDp

— EMILY🇺🇸🇲🇦 (@CrewsmatMorocco) December 6, 2022

Many football fans have classed the victory as Arab, Berber, African and Muslim, holding that the team has carried each of the categories into the semi-finals, while others have debated the categories they believe the Moroccan team fit into.