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Sneijder Refuses His Mother’s Request Asking Him to Leave Istanbul | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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The Dutch professional footballer Wesley Sneijder who plays for Turkish club Galatasaray, one of the biggest clubs in Istanbul and the Turkish football league, responded to his mother’s request that he leaves Istanbul and return to his country because of the recent terrorist attacks in the Turkish city by saying that he was happy in Istanbul.

According to Turkish media, Sylvia Sneijder sent a message to her son Wesley in which she wrote “We are very concerned because of the frequent terrorist attacks, come back to your country as (Turkey) is no longer a safe place for you”.

Sneijder, who became a star loved by millions of Galatasaray fans and football supporters in Turkey, responded to his mother’s message by saying “We are happy in Istanbul and are compelled to continue living a normal life”. He continued by saying that the threat of terrorism is everywhere and that terrorist attacks had taken place in Germany, France, Belgium and other countries.

Sneijder drew his mother’s attention to the fact that a young man of Tunisian origin carried out a terrorist attack in a Christmas market in Berlin before the attack on the Reina nightclub in Istanbul. Twelve people were killed in the attack and dozens wounded. He confirmed that he will continue to play for the Turkish club which he joined in 2013 after leaving an Italian football club called Inter Milan.