Trump to Erdogan in bizarre letter about Turkish offensive in Syria: 'Don’t be a fool!'

Donald Trump and Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
(Image credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Several members of the media were holding out for a while before reporting on a letter that President Trump supposedly sent to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan because they weren't sure if it was a joke.

In the bizarre letter, which was dated Oct. 9 and first reported by Fox Business' Trish Regan on Wednesday, Trump tells Erdogan not to be a "tough guy" or a "fool," and warns him against "slaughtering thousands of people" during Turkey's military offensive in northern Syria following the withdrawal of U.S. troops in the region. He then promises to call Erdogan "later."

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Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.