Turkey condemns Greece over closure of Turkish-language schools

Turkey's foreign ministry condemned a Greek decision to close eight schools serving the country's Turkish-speaking minority, accusing Greece of discrimination. In a communique on Sunday, the ministry said Greece was following systematic practices that weakened the Turkish minority's right to education in Western Thrace. It also called on Greece to meet what Turkey described as its obligations on minority and fundamental rights.

The closures leave 76 Turkish-language schools in Thrace, a north-eastern region near the border between Greece and Turkey. Greek authorities have said they are closing schools, not only in Turkish-speaking areas, because pupil numbers are falling.

According to 2021 statistics cited in the report, about 120,000 Muslims of Turkish origin live in Thrace. The source said they have specific rights on religion and education under the Treaty of Lausanne, signed after the First World War.