By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Sad news impacted Anadolu Efes and Erdem Can. The team located in Istanbul snapped a seven-game losing streak and got back on track in the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. Learning about five Turkish soldiers killed and more wounded in northern Iraq during the Regular Season Round 21 fixture, Can sent his condolences.
“We are on the entertainment part of this world, but on the other hand too many innocent people are affected by terrorism,” he commented after Friday’s contest, “Let’s stop it. Thinking about people’s families. They just try to protect their countries. These terrorist attacks, in all the world. It is enough. I am deeply sorry. I just give my condolences to the families.”
Following a long stint at Fenerbahce as an assistant, the 43-year-old Turkish tactician worked for the Utah Jazz under Quin Snyder in the 2021-22 NBA season. From taking over Turk Telekom in 2022-23 as the head coach, he moved to Efes replacing Ergin Ataman in June.
Operations in northern Iraq against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, PKK, listed as a terrorist organization in Turkiye, the United States, the European Union, and other countries have spread across four decades. More than 40,000 people have died.
“Five of our brave comrades were martyred in a clash with terrorists attempting to infiltrate our base in the Operation Claw-Lock zone,” said the National Defense Ministry of Turkiye in a statement noting wounded soldiers transferred to the the hospital and at least 12 terrorists neutralized.
Photo Credit: EuroleagueBasketball.net