I Have Always Distanced Myself From Any Kind Of Extremism And Accusations Of Islamism – Rudiger

Real Madrid defender, Antonio Rudiger has come out to break his silence after he was accused of supporting terrorism.

He recently had his say while speaking to the press, and fans have been reacting.

According to him, the gesture he used in the photo is called the tawheed finger in Islam, and it signifies the unity and uniqueness of God, so he does not understand where former BILD editor, Julian Reichelt got the terrorism links from.

He added that the post had been publicly viewable for 13 days without any criticism from anyone, until Julian chose to say something absurd.

His words, “To mark the beginning of Lent, I published a post on Instagram. This has already been publicly viewable for 13 days (since March 11) and has reached several million followers without any criticism from anyone.

But in recent days the photo has been used by individuals to make unfounded accusations.

The gesture I used is called the tawheed finger. In Islam, this is considered a symbol of the unity and uniqueness of God. The gesture is widespread among Muslims all over the world and has only been classified as unproblematic by the Federal Ministry of the Interior in the last few days.

As a devout Muslim, I practice my faith, but I firmly distance myself from any kind of extremism and accusations of Islamism. Violence and terrorism are absolutely unacceptable. I stand for peace and tolerance.

Many of my family members belong to different religions. Nevertheless, we respect each other and celebrate religious festivals together. Respect and tolerance are fundamental principles that we all represent in our family.

However, I also recognise that due to insufficient attention, I have given third parties the opportunity to deliberately misinterpret my posting in order to divide and polarize.

But I will not offer a platform for division and radicalization, which is why I have decided to make a clear statement after our two successful international matches.

At the same time, I will not allow myself to be insulted and denigrated as an Islamist. That’s why I decided to file a report. This is about propaganda and division; I will always resolutely defend myself against this.

I hope this clarification helps clear up misunderstandings and bring the truth to light. I would also like to thank the DFB, who supported me at all times in this matter.”