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Greek neo-Nazi party "Golden Dawn" MEP ejected from EP

Xinhua, March 10, 2016 Adjust font size:

Following a debate over the agreement between Turkey and the European Union (EU) on the refugee crisis, a Member of European Parliament (MEP) from the Greek neo-Nazi party "Golden Dawn" was ejected on Wednesday from the hemicycle of the European Parliament, currently meeting for its plenary session in Strasbourg, for having insulted the Turks.

"As the literate Ottomans wrote: the Turk is a barbarian of the spirit, blasphemer, pig-headed and dirty. The Turk is like a dog: it acts ferocious but when he must face an adversary, he runs," declared MEP Eleftherios Synadinos, member of the Green neo-Nazi party "Golden Dawn".

Martin Schulz, the social-democrat president of the European Parliament, explained "I made a decision on principle. There are more and more people (in Parliament) who try to cross the red lines in order to try to render racism acceptable."

President Schulz had threatened the MEP Eleftherios Synadinos to bring bailiffs to intervene and force him to leave the Strasbourg hemicycle. The "Golden Dawn" MEP finally resolved to leave on his own.

The President of the Parliament also admonished French far right MEP Bruno Gollnisch who pounded on the hemicycle benches in order to express his opposition to such a decision.

"Mr Gollnisch, if you cannot manage to calm yourself, we will administer you with a tranquilizer!" shot Schulz.

In addition to this incident, the long parliamentary debate on the conclusions of the extraordinary summit in Brussels took place in a particularly stormy climate.

The MEPs strongly criticized the draft agreement agreed on Tuesday between the EU and Turkey, accusing European leaders to have "given in to blackmail" from Ankara in exchange for its help in managing the refugee crisis.

From the right to the left, from greens to populist euroskeptics, passing by liberals and socialists, MEPs fired lethal shots at the draft agreement which notably provides for new financial aid from the EU to Turkey. Endit