Egypt's religious authority says Turkish show 'aims to revive Ottoman Empire'

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Egypt's religious authority Dar Al Ifta has warned citizens about the Turkish Netflix show "Resurrection: Ertuğrul" on the grounds that it "serves the dream of reviving the Ottoman Empire."

The fatwa, which is an Islamic legal ruling on a given issue provided by a recognized religious authority, was published on the Dar Al Ifta website .

The fatwa said that Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan dreams of reviving the Ottoman Empire, and that the shows "Resurrection: Ertuğrul" and "Valley of the Woods" were tools to help Erdoğan achieve this end.

"[Erdoğan] will not fail to actualize his dream ... through soft power, through cultural and artistic works. The best evidence of this is the series 'Valley of the Wolves' and the series 'Resurrection: Ertuğrul,'" said the fatwa.

"Resurrection: Ertuğrul" looks into the life of Muslim nomadic Turks, particularly Ertuğrul, the father of the founding Ottoman sultan Osman I.

"Valley of the Wolves," on the other hand, is a modern show that follows the life of Polat Alemdar, a self-identified mob boss whose adventures go as far as military escapades that protect Turkey's national security.

The ruling also noted that Erdoğan has previously deemed "Resurrection: Ertuğrul" a very important response to those who underestimated Turkish production capabilities.

"Wretched discourse"

The Dar Al Ifta said the shows displayed a "wretched discourse" that interprets Islamic texts pragmatically to justify violence and killing and that it exports a "accurate image of wrongful acts."

Meanhwile, Egyptian fans of the show took to social media to protest the fatwa, pointing out controversies in the Dar Al Ifta's policies.

"The Dar Al Ifta forbade Turkish shows. Then why is the country still airing shows that have anti-Muslim content?" said one user.