Region reacts to AK Party victory in Turkish elections

Official statements, mostly those congratulating Turkey’s Justice and Development (AK) Party on its electoral victory, poured into Ankara from around the world Monday.

Khaled Meshaal, head of Hamas’ political bureau, congratulated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu -- the latter of whom leads the AK Party -- on the poll results, which effectively give the party a majority in the country’s parliament.

In a statement, Hamas said Meshaal had called both Erdogan and Davutoglu to convey the Palestinian group’s congratulations on Turkey’s “democratic” electoral environment.

Meshaal also expressed hope that the poll results would “contribute to Turkey’s development and stability” and “benefit the Palestinian people -- in their formidable struggle [against Israeli occupation] -- as well as the Turkish people”.

Addis Ababa, too, registered its pleasure with Turkey’s election results.

Expressing congratulations to the Turkish people, Ethiopian government spokesman Getachew Reda told Anadolu Agency: “Turkey is a very important country for peace worldwide. Stability in Turkey directly impacts peace in the Middle East and Europe.”

And in Tunis, Rached Ghannouchi, leader of the Ennahda Party, congratulated both Turkey and party leader Davutoglu, saying: “Today is an important day for the Arab Spring and democracy.”

According to Ennahda Party sources, Ghannouchi also called Turkey’s Erdogan to congratulate him on the AK Party’s victory in the country’s 26th general elections.

In Syria, meanwhile, 12 different opposition groups -- all of which oppose the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad -- likewise congratulated Turkey on the poll results.

“The AK Party’s victory is important in terms of the sensitive developments currently going on in the region,” the groups said in a joint statement.

They went on to call on “all countries to help the ongoing revolution [against the regime] in Syria”.

Groups that signed the congratulatory statement included the Sultan Murad Division; the Damascus Front; the Army of Mujahedeen; the Sahaba Brigades; and the Fastaqim Kama Umirt; among others.

In a separate message, a handful of other Syrian opposition groups -- including the Islamic Army and the First Brigade -- also congratulated the AK Party for regaining its parliamentary majority, going on to voice hope that Turkey would continue to “contribute to the region’s stability”.

And in northern Iraq’s Kurdish region, media organizations close to the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) described Sunday’s general elections in Turkey as a “victory for the AK Party”.

According to preliminary results, the AK Party secured 49.48 percent of the vote -- much more than had been predicted by pollsters -- giving it a wide majority (317 out of 550 seats) in parliament.

Sunday’s vote was called following inconclusive elections in June, which saw no party win an outright majority. Almost five months of subsequent talks between parties failed to produce a coalition.