ANKARA, Turkey—On a night of European soccer matches between national teams, the scenes in London and Istanbul were a study in contrast. The British and French fans at London’s Wembley Stadium sang the French national anthem in solidarity over the Paris attacks, while in Istanbul hundreds of Turkish fans booed the Greek national anthem and disrupted a moment of silence for those killed in Paris.
The ugly incident illustrated what has been an ambivalent reaction to the attacks in Turkey — France’s NATO ally.
While soccer fans are in no way representative of society as a whole, the scenes showed that the Paris attacks did not draw the same outpouring of grief as elsewhere in the mainly Muslim country, where recent research showed 8 percent of the population had a favorable view of the Islamic State group. Analysts said the episode revealed the dim view some Turks have of European nations they accuse of insensitivity toward attacks by Kurdish rebels and other groups that have plagued Turkey over the past few decades.
During the outburst at Istanbul’s Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium on Tuesday night, team captain and Barcelona midfielder Arda tried fruitlessly to silence the crowd. And after the match ended in a 0-0 draw, Turkey’s national team manager was furious.
“What has happened to us?” Fatih Terim said at a post-match news conference. “As we hold a minute of silence for the dead, can’t we show patience even for a minute?”
The incident unfolded as the prime ministers of Turkey and Greece watched together from the stands as part of efforts to overcome historically strained ties — adding further embarrassment.
It drew strong criticism from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who appealed for soul-searching: “This is unacceptable,” he said. “We are not a nation that cannot show respect to the anthem of another country. This is something we have to solve.”
But Erdogan only mentioned the disruption of the national anthem — not the minute of silence — and pinned the blame on “a few hundred irresponsible people.” Other officials condemned the uproar during the moment of silence, which included nationalist chants and scattered calls of “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is great.” Officials have scrambled to avoid a repeat in future games.
“We do not look positively upon the whistling protest or the protest with words that disrupt the minute of silence,” said Omer Celik, the spokesman for the ruling Justice and Development Party.
