تركيا تحاول استقطاب بعض الوجهاء من “الطائفة العلوية

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY BURAK AKINCIAlawite men and women, belonging to the largest religious Muslim community in Turkey after the Sunni, dance on December 1, 2010 during the cem ritual, a worship service, in the eastern Turkish city of Sivas. Alawites are losing hope to have their demands satisfied by the government, which as part of its candidacy to the European Union, says it is reaching out to minorities. Turkish authorities have long tried to assmilate the Alawites, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, preaching a moderate and tolerate interpretation of the Coran. Alawites are considered heretics by many Sunnis because they do not go to the mosque, do not pray five times a day and do not fast during Ramadan. In its progress reports on Turkey’s possible adhesion to the European Union, the EU commission regularly denounces the condition of the Alawite community. AFP PHOTO/ADEM ALTAN (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)