Former Germany midfielder Mesut Özil has criticized Muslim countries for not speaking up for minorities subjected to abuse in China. More than 1 million people have been sent to reeducation camps in the Xinjiang region.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/M. Egerton
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Former Germany international footballer Mesut Özil expressed support for Uighurs in Xinjiang, China, on Friday and criticized Muslim countries for their unwillingness to speak out on the poor treatment faced by the Uighur people, a Muslim minority group.
"Qurans are being burnt. Mosques are being shut down. Muslim schools are being banned. Religious scholars are being killed. Brothers are forcefully being sent to camps," the Arsenal player posted in Turkish on Twitter and Instagram.
"The Muslims are silent. Their voice is not heard," he wrote on a background of a blue field with a white crescent moon, the flag of what Uighur separatists call East Turkestan.
Beijing has received international condemnation for creating a series of camps in Xinjiang in northern China aimed at homogenizing the Muslim group to reflect China's majority Han culture.
Arsenal, Özil's current team, distanced itself from the player's remarks.
"The content published is Özil's personal opinion," the club said in a statement. "As a football club, Arsenal has always adhered to the principle of not involving itself in politics."
China: Camps are education centers to prevent terrorism
Over a million Uighurs and people of other mostly Muslim minorities have been rounded up in the camps in the tightly controlled region, according to human rights organizations and other experts.
China described the camps as educational centers aimed at combating potential terrorism.
Turkey, which takes its name from Turkic people who migrated from central Asia, is home to a Uighur community as well and has regularly highlighted the plight of the Muslim group.
Özil added: "What will be remembered years later would not be the torture by the tyrants but the silence of their Muslim brothers."
The 31-year-old has become a controversial figure, particularly in his homeland, Germany, in recent years. In 2018 he was photographed with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, raising questions about his loyalty to the national team on the eve of the World Cup in Russia. Germany made an early exit from the tournament and Özil subsequently quit the national team, accusing German football officials of racism.
The soccer star has resigned from international play after accusing the German football association (DFB) of racist treatment. Here's how the quiet, talented midfielder attracted legions of loyal fans.
Özil joined the youth system of Bundesliga team Schalke in his hometown of Gelsenkirchen in 2005. His success on the international stage came early, winning the U21 European championship with Germany in 2009.
Image: Imago/Team 2
Bremen and beyond
Özil's club career has not disappointed those who once described him as "the next big thing." After a falling out with Schalke over salary, Özil moved to Werder Bremen in 2008. His performances for Germany in 2010's World Cup gained the attention of Europe's best clubs. He moved to Real Madrid in 2010 and later moved to English team Arsenal for a (then) club record €50 million ($58.7 million).
Image: Imago/Sven Simon
Paragon of integration
In 2010, Özil won the Bambi — Germany's top media prize — for being a shining example of German integration. A third-generation German, he has always expressed pride in his Turkish roots, while emphasizing that his life has been devoted to Germany. An observant Muslim, he posted pictures of himself making the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in 2016.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/B. Pedersen
King of Hearts
Seen here meeting Chancellor Angela Merkel after defeating Turkey in 2012, the attacking midfielder has attracted legions of loyal fans for his quiet, unassuming personality and philanthropy. He would later be applauded for donating his 2014 World Cup winnings to Brazilian children in need of life-saving surgery and for meeting with Syrian refugee children in Jordan.
Özil started in all seven games of Germany's sucessful World Cup run in Brazil in 2014. Known as "Löw's playmaker," the midfielder has a close relationship with German national coach Joachim Löw. He ended the tournament leading in passes completed in the final third and was behind only Argentine superstar Lionel Messi in chances created.
Image: picture-alliance/GES/M. Gillar
Erdogan controversy
Özil has met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan several times, most recently in May 2018, leading to a photo opportunity that many resoundingly condemned — from the political left for his apparent support of an authoritarian leader, and from the right for a perceived lack of loyalty to Germany.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Presidential Press Service
End of an era
Germany crashed out in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup in Russia — the national team's worst performance in decades. The president of the DFB, Reinhard Grindel, attempted to deflect criticism from himself by blaming Özil's Erodgan meeting for distracting the team. Grindel's reaction drew intense criticism from German politicians and soccer fans.
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'I am German when we win but an immigrant when we lose'
In an eviscerating statement on Twitter, Özil resigned from international play in July 2018, aged 29. "I will no longer stand for being a scapegoat for his incompentence," the footballer said of Grindel. Accusing the DFB president of racism, he thanked Löw and others in the German team for their support. In total, he played 92 matches for Germany, scored 23 goals, and registered 40 assists.
