ADNAN OKTAR: I want to welcome you once again. It is nice to host you here.
BEN KNIGHT: Thank you for making some time for us, it’s a great privilege to be here.
ADNAN OKTAR: Thank you. Shall we start the interview?
BEN KNIGHT: Well if we are ready we can begin. I think what I’d like to concentrate on tonight is your work on promoting creation over evolution. And I think my first question would be why is it that you do what you do, what it is that you are trying to do?
ADNAN OKTAR: It is a very astonishing, miraculous incident that the world is being deceived for one and a half centuries with such a nonsense lie. It is also very astonishing that hundreds of thousands of professors, assistant professors believe in it. An ignorant person may well believe in it to some extent, but it is amazing how an educated, knowledgeable person who has made research on the subject persistently and decisively defends such a nonsense theory which is based on chance despite his awareness of the existence of over 250 million fossils proving Creation and their knowledge about the impossibility of the coming into existence of a protein by chance. Then I believed that a comprehensive ideological struggle was essential. And now I am in such an effort.
BEN KNIGHT: And what is it that you are trying to achieve with this struggle, what are you trying to do?
ADNAN OKTAR: Darwinism removed the love from the face of the world. It removed compassion, love, affection, friendship, neighborliness and humanness. It caused the death of more than 350 million people. It led to the breaking out of World War I and World War 2, and the appearance of communism, fascism, satanism and similar pervert philosophies. It laid the world to waste and legalized terror and anarchy. Terror and anarchy. They disseminated the views suggesting that there is a kind of conflict in the universe; a thesis and an anti-thesis and the triumph of synthesis following the struggle between thesis and anti-thesis. They disseminated a fascist view to the world suggesting the defeat of the weak by the strong and caused an enormous massacre, lovelessness, egoism and selfishness in the world. This is an enormous destruction they have made, a great violence. Putting an end to it is a duty upon every human being. No matter to which religion they belong to, this is a humanitarian duty. But as a Muslim this is obligatory upon me; it is a command of Allah. According to the Qur’an, I am responsible for advocating moral perfection, love, peace and brotherhood depicted in the Qur’an.
BEN KNIGHT: Is that the case though, that as least as much violence has been a result of religion, as of Darwinism as you say, the Crusades, the Ottoman Empire, September 11, why say one is bad and the other one does not cause any problems?
ADNAN OKTAR: All of the people who committed the 9/11 events in America are people having tendency to Marxism who had undergone Darwinist-materialist training in America and England. They believe in Lenin’s theories suggesting that terror is the solution. Consequently this is untrue. Masonic organizations such as the Fraternity of Rose Cross and other masonic organizations organized the crusades. For instance Templars are masonic organizations and perverted systems. In every age of the world there has been Darwinist, materialist thought. In Sumerians, Ancient Egypt, in the age of the Pharaoh or in Ancient Greece this perverted belief based on coincidental creation prevailed. Consequently there has been no attack, no persecution whatsoever originating from religion; because there exists compassion and mercy in the reality of religion. The Qur’an commands to forgive even a murderer. That is, in a religion that forgives even a murderer how can terror and anarchy exist? Furthermore, All-Mighty Allah says, I seek refuge in Allah from satan, “There is no compulsion where the religion is concerned.” This means there is no oppression in religion, and in the absence of oppression one understands the impossibility of conflicts and violence. The Qur’an orders to forgive people, command what is right, and turn away from the evil.
Allah commands us to forgive, not revenge. I seek refuge in Allah from satan, Allah commands us to turn away from evil. There are hundreds of verses in the Qur’an. Similarly the Torah and the Gospels also mention compassion, mercy and love. Consequently, there has never been a war originating from religion. They merely used religion. Sadists, those who spill blood, people who possess perverted beliefs that originate from evolution, masonic organizations used religion and they still use it in their attacks, in violence. They only use the name of religion; they cannot use the religion itself after all.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. What have you managed to achieve in Turkey? What is the state of Darwinism in the schools, in the curriculum?
ADNAN OKTAR: In Turkey, it is now embarrassing to defend Darwinism because in order to defend such a deceit one should have a really thick skin on his face. That is to say, a person should really be something different in order to tell such an explicit, obvious lie looking directly into people’s eyes. It is impossible for Turkey, a country of intelligent, wise people, for such a theory to gain ground since this theory asserts that the Earth, all living beings, animals, plants, trees, all humanity have come into existence by chance despite the existence of all these fossils, all these proofs, and obvious non-existence of counter-evidence. Consequently it is demolished. For the time being 95 percent of the population does not believe in Darwinism. In 1971s this situation was just the contrary. Right now people have become faithful and sincerely believe in the scientific data. Fake science has been eradicated from the face of the Earth. That is, fake science will no longer take root in the world. Biology, physics, chemistry, geology, paleontology; these disciplines continuously reveal the truths of the Qur’an while disclose the lies of Darwinism. Consequently in a place where there is science, it is no longer possible to advocate Darwinism.
BEN KNIGHT: Perhaps I wasn’t clear with my question. I wanted to know what is the state of Darwinism in the schools? Is it being taught in the schools? How much is being taught in the schools and is this due to Mr. Oktar’s work?
ADNAN OKTAR: Darwinism is included in the curriculum but as a program-for-fun for the kids. As a comedy-show. It is nothing beyond laughing-stock for kids because kids look into the eyes of their teachers and laugh at them when the teachers start making inconceivably irrational explanations; they say that all the universe had come into being by chance, trees, human beings had come into existence by chance, there is no transitional fossil but there is Darwinism, there are 250-300 million fossils verifying Creation but there is also Darwinism. It is evident that none of them will believe in such a funny theory. Teaching Darwinism is important; it is essential so that pupils can take lessons from them. Kids and all the humanity can see how the entire world is deceived by a funny lie and feels astounded. Teaching Darwinism is essential. Darwinism should surely be taught since people should learn how such a great deceit laid humanity to waste, how it brought torment to people and deprived them of love and happiness. Even if it is not taught, I would encourage them to teach. But for the time being it is comprehensively taught while Creation is not. Only a line is devoted to Creation. It is only stated that some people defend Creation, that is, it is mentioned as a mere formality. However despite this, 95 percent of the Turkish people believe in Creation. Exclusion of Creation from curriculum and inclusion of Darwinism has just the contrary impact. That is, Creation spreads while Darwinism collapses.
BEN KNIGHT: Should it be given equal time with creation, science?
ADNAN OKTAR: It does not matter. In any case I have crushed it and always crush all around the world. Those who try to deceive people with such a lie can establish institutions, universities and spend trillions of money. It was a giant balloon but exploded and scattered around with a single pin. No one believes in a lie. It is embarrassing to look into the eyes of people and attempt to tell the fallacy of 1800s, this pagan religion, this awful belief in which even the Pharaoh hardly believed, in the age of the Internet when television and radio are also available. Of course Darwinism should be included in the curriculum; indeed it should be told comprehensively. Fascism and communism should also be told. Yet pupils should also learn the counter view. But if it is not allowed; that is, if the Darwinist dictatorship does not allow it, then we will definitely find a way to tell it. In other words, if Darwinism is crushed under all circumstances, it is because we have found a way to do it. They, at least, cannot cope with the Internet right now. They cannot stop the Internet. They can intervene televisions, radios to some extent but they can not intervene the Internet, they could not. All the youth understood that Darwinism is a fallacy, a plot and a lie. They are too late now. No one would believe in this deceit any longer.
BEN KNIGHT: But in fact you have stopped the Internet. Richard Dawkins’ site was banned in Turkey because you went to court and banned it, had it banned. So that’s not allowing the free flow of information, is it?
ADNAN OKTAR: I applied for the closure of Dawkins’ site due to the obvious libels and defamation in it. If you were libeled and insulted if he insulted you in that way, I would also do the same for you. I do not allow anyone to be subjected to slanders. Yet science should be supported to the end. The disclosure of Darwinism through science is very important. People should see that such a perverted ideology took place in history. There are so many websites about Darwinism and so many scientists tell it but they explain this fallacy scientifically. They convey this deceit, this pagan religion in a course of history, like it is an historical information. Because Darwinism has become history. But they do not insult. If one insults, nobody would allow it, you would also not allow it, and so do I.
Besides Dawkins has also abandoned Darwinism. He has started to believe in aliens. He converted to the religion of space. In the past he used to defend a pagan religion; he was a member of a Darwinian pagan religion. Now, being a member of a space cult, he says it is aliens who created us and who made chromosomes. He follows a brand-new line now. He does not explain who created aliens of course, but it is obvious that he takes aliens as his deity.
BEN KNIGHT: Coming from a western country, it is strange to think that you can have an internet site banned for something like that. How much influence do you think you have in Turkey over school education, over these sorts of things? What have you been able to achieve?
ADNAN OKTAR: If you are insulted, would you not make that Internet site banned? Is it free to insult people in the world? Anyone who wishes can curse and insult anyone else and people will keep silent to that? This is unacceptable. People anywhere in the world would not allow themselves to be insulted, they would not allow themselves to be libeled. In the case of such an event, courts of every government are authorized, they both suit for damages against that libel and ban the related site. No one has the right to insult another. This is illegal. Practicing science, on the other hand, is legal, this is very obvious. That is to say, we totally support science. If Dawkins tells Darwinism, we would respect that but his insults are unacceptable. That is to say, insults, attacks are unacceptable.
BEN KNIGHT: But you can test that in court. You can take him to court for example in a defamation case. This is what usually happens, you don’t ban the web site.
ADNAN OKTAR: Okay. That is how the site was banned. All the courts around the world have the same conviction regarding this subject. No matter where you are, cursing, insulting or libeling another person is illegal, according to the laws of every country. And governments prevent these by laws. I also applied to the Court and this is the verdict of the Court. That is, this is the verdict of the independent Turkish Court.
BEN KNIGHT: It doesn’t quite work that way all over the world, but we’ll move on from that.
ADNAN OKTAR: I want to know which country allows defamation, curse or attack.
BEN KNIGHT: When you feel you’ve been slandered of defamed, you launch a case against the person and in this case I would imagine you would go to a British court and you would say, Mr. Dawkins has slandered me and you deal with it there. You don’t ban the web site.
ADNAN OKTAR: That is how I did it. Because he slandered me I filed a case and this is how the Court gave its verdict.
BEN KNIGHT: But you didn’t invite Mr. Dawkins to the court and you didn’t run it in the UK where Mr. Dawkins is publishing his web site.
ADNAN OKTAR: We warned him asking him to remove his insults from his site. Our attorney made the necessary warning and they did not remove them despite our recurrent warnings. Then the Turkish courts took the decision to ban the site. That is to say, they were warned. We handle our problems through Turkish courts, not through British courts. I am Turkish, so I go to Turkish courts.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. I’ll come back to my question. How much influence have you been able to achieve through the publishing of all these books and DVDs? How much influence do you have on things like what is taught in schools?
ADNAN OKTAR : At the moment Darwinism had been razed to ground in America, in UK, in France and in all over the world. I mean if you noticed, if you follow it up from the media you will see that no voice is coming from the Darwinists anymore. Formerly they used to tell lots and lots of lies. At the moment, since I have been proving all their lies instantly, they are unable to tell any more lies. You have seen various examples of that recently, since they have received the responses instantly, they have been exhausted to tell anymore lies. Now they have been lodged into complete silence. However for Darwinism to be talked about everywhere is something that I do want because it is necessary for such a lie to be shown to the people as an example so that the evolution theory could be completely brought away. That is to say there is such an error, such an ugliness, be aware of that. According to my understanding such an information should be given. We are giving the necessary response in any case. However just as we have been telling about the abnormalities experienced in the times of the Pharaoh, just as we have been telling about the abnormal pagan belief during the times of the Sumerians, as history, we are to tell people about Darwinism in the same manner. We should be telling about this perverse religion of the 1800s with all the details to the humanity. I mean we should be telling about those so that we would be able to give their response, how are we to respond to a thing that we are not talking about? Consequently Darwinism is being talked about quiet extensively at schools in Turkey while Creation is almost not being talked about at all. It is duly mentioned in a single line but against all odds Darwinism had been razed down to ground in Turkey. I mean the highest power is the power of the truth, there is no power in lies.
BEN KNIGHT: In Genesis, in the Jewish and in the Christian Bible, God created the Earth in 7 days. By the calculations of people who have tried, the Earth is reckoned to be less than 6000 years old. What are your views of that as a fact of Creation?
ADNAN OKTAR : That is the reason why the Christian and Jewish creationists had been defeated. I mean they have been defeated up against the Darwinists and they were in a very difficult position. In the face of my appearance this time Darwinists had experienced an absolute defeat that they have never ever guessed and they didn’t anticipated that at all. They have established a worldwide Darwinist empire in the universities, institutions, in the schools. They used to spend billions of dollars in hundred thousands of universities and schools, they used to educate people by these lies. However with the distribution of my Atlas of Creation in Europe and in America and also with the effect of the Internet website, Darwinism had turned into an embarrassing theory. However at the root of this happening lay the advancements in science. For instance the advancements in biomathematics, the appereance of the electron microscope, the advancements in paleontology and in archeology, the advancements in biochemistry had brought the end of Darwinism. For instance Darwin himself had said; “... Why, if species have descended from other species by insensibly fine gradations, do we not everywhere see innumerable transitional forms?” First of all there are no transitional forms. Darwin himself says that. “Why is not all nature in confusion instead of the species being, as we see them, well defined?…” There is a perfect regularity, symmetry and a golden ratio on Earth, Darwin says there is no explanation for that. He says “there should be innumerable transitional forms but why do we not everywhere see them burried in the innumerable layes of the crust of earth?” I mean he asks why do we not find any transitional fossils? There are none, for instance the search is still going on at the moment. Even then tens of thousands of workers were searching, they have searched all the crusts of the earth but have not found even a single fossil of a transitional form. “Why is not every geological structure and every layer full of such links?” Actually every geological structure and every layer of the crust had been searched to its finest detail there but not even a single transitional fossil had ever been found. After Darwin, it has stil been searched for 150 years and not even one had ever been discovered. However over 250 million fossils, over 250 million fossils had been found to prove creation. For instance the contemporary rabbit of our day is exactly the same with the fossil of the rabbit from 30 million years ago. The frog that lived 100 million years ago has the same appearance as the frogs of today, it didn’t undergo any change. Since Darwin had seen all those, he had desperately related the impasses of his theory and his theory is actually in such an impasse. However with the advances of modern science, Darwinism had literally collapsed. I mean the Darwinists have nothing left to talk about at the moment.
BEN KNIGHT: So what were Neanderthal man?
ADNAN OKTAR : Neanderthal man is a human race. I mean even now there are people like that. For instance, recently there was a Russian boxer he was just like a classical Neanderthal. I mean he is exactly like that. The volume of the brain of Neanderthals are more developed. Tyson for instance you can also say that Tyson is a classical Neanderthal. For instance the pigmies are small, they are tiny, 135 -140 -125 centimeters. Their heads are this big but they are highly intelligent.
BEN KNIGHT: So how old do you think the Earth is?
ADNAN OKTAR : Minimum 15 billion years.
BEN KNIGHT: So, it sounds, what you are talking about sounds like “Intelligent Design”. Is that right?
ADNAN OKTAR : That is very insincere. I mean it is a coward theory, that is to say it is diffident. It doesn’t say Allah had created, it just says there is one Creator but we do not know who He is. I mean that is a theory that tries to explain things with a very insincere reference. However as you might notice no one refers them as an addressee because people do not approach to any belief that is insincere. It is evident that Allah had created all. I mean it is seen from everywhere. There is a perfect system all around the world, everywhere and there is a symmetry order and a golden ratio in all creatures. For instance at the moment I see you full colored inside my brain at the moment. A soul sees you in my brain. The human eye does not see. The human eye only transmits the image to the brain. We do see the electric current, the thing that is formed by electric currents and transmitted to the brain as an image. Actually it is the soul that sees, this is a pretty amazing thing. For instance the ear does not hear, ear only converts the sound waves to the electrical energy and transmits them to the brain. It reaches to our brains and the soul in our brain hears it and it hears it as music. I mean there are only waves outside. There is no color outside and there is no light outside. Light is only an interpretation of our brains. And the color is the interpretation of our brains. And colors are the interpretations of our brain. I mean light consists of nothing but waves. I mean the sun is pitch black; the outer world is dark. The matter is transparent, and that stems from the structure of the matter. I mean its appereance is transparent due to the distance of the nucleus, neutrons and protons from eachother. However we do see them in the image formed in our minds as colored and three dimentional. I mean it is very unbecoming to still refer to the existence of a Power that has created such a structure in a hesitant manner. Of course, they have to say it out clearly that Allah created.
BEN KNIGHT: You first really, I think, came to attention when you sent out the Atlas of Creation around the world to academics, to universities and did it free of charge. It is a very expensive exercise. Where did you get the money for that?
ADNAN OKTAR : The publishing house that printed the Atlas of Creation is selling my books on worldwide. For instance, only this year more than 20 million copies of my books are sold and the income collected from that completely goes to the publishing house. I myself do not even take any royalty fees, I mean I do not earn anything from my books, it goes completely to the publishing house. Consequently the publishing house uses the funds that have been put away for advertising in book distribution. When the publishing house distributes the books to the world, when they make such a presentation, it causes the books to be sold even more and there are more people asking for those books. Publishing house uses such a method as it has been proven to be profitable for them and of course this is actually a method that I do enjoy.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. There are people who are reluctant to talk about you. They might hold a different view but they are reluctant to say so publicly, because they think that you will take them to court. Do you use the courts to silence people?
ADNAN OKTAR: No, I am a man who defends democracy, freedom of thought to the end. I mean if there were no Marxists, no Darwinists, no materialists I wouldn’t have written all these books. I support the freedom of thought to the end. However insults and offensive manners and curses are atrocious crimes against humanity. I mean it is not something that a reasonable and high quality person could do. All the countries on earth had made laws that would protect their citizens against such people, I mean this is why those laws are made. And I am defending myself according to these law codes. For instance if a person is in England or in America, if he had been insulted, if he had been cursed upon, he can apply to the courts and even collect severance money and ensure that the other party is punished for the offense and thus halt the attacks realised against them. For that reason it is a grave mistake to be afraid from the law, people are defending themselves with laws, I am also defending myself with laws. That is my civil right. I would be defending myself with law even if I were in America, or in Russia. As a Turkish citizen I am also defending myself, as all the American citizens as all the English citizens do. That is to say I would not have myself, my personality insulted.
BEN KNIGHT: If your argument on Creationism is so strong and if Darwinism is such a joke why go through the courts? How many cases have you won?
ADNAN OKTAR: The lawsuits that I have filed are not related to Darwinism, they are regarding the insults that were made to myself. My scientific studies about Darwinism, the consequences of the advancements in science have already demolished Darwinism. Darwinism remained under the heavy pressure of science. But these cases are only related to personal insults. In the same way that I would file a lawsuit in the case of a physical attack to myself, I file a lawsuit also and I defend myself when someone attacks me verbally, that is to say, uses insulting words or abusive language. If it happens once more, I will defend myself again. How can someone defend himself besides the court? It is the most wise, most rational and most democratic way. That is lawful and accepted worldwide. Like every citizen, every world citizen I defend myself with the rights that laws grant me; there is nothing surprising in that. This has nothing to do with science for I did not file suit on grounds that Dawkins is a Darwinist. I filed a suit on why he insulted me. I filed a suit asking him why he insulted my personality. Otherwise, I used no words regarding his ideas. He can defend his own ideas, at any rate let him defend his ideas so that I can crush him easily and the world sees it. That is on ideological and scientific basis. We crush with science.
I invited Dawkins to here, I told him that I will provide him with best hotels and will not fail in respect for him. If he comes, we will host him in the best manner and show him the highest respect. And I told him that I want a debate, that I want to discuss with him. If he spares only half an hour or one hour, that would be enough, but he insistently runs away. He argues with children of middle and high school, rabbis and Christian priests, but he strictly avoids debating with me, since he knows that he will be defeated for sure. Since he is certain that he will suffer a great defeat in front of all the cameras, television stations and the eyes of the whole world, he strongly keeps away from it. Even more I invited him to debate on an English daily, but he avoids from it madly. If I draw back of his ideas, would I make such an invitation? That means in no way do I abstain from his ideas, I have no trouble with his opinions, I am not bothered with his speeches and writings. I am only bothered with his insult. If that was the case, I would not invite him to debate in front of the television cameras and let him speak. That is to say, his ideas are by no means a risk and threat to me. Furthermore, that it is better that he speaks, this is essential to allow me to present his errors to people.
BEN KNIGHT: How many cases have you brought against people who have defiled you?
ADNAN OKTAR: Not too many, that is 5-6 at most, not more.
BEN KNIGHT: Really?
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes, yes. It is to myself.
BEN KNIGHT: As a person, yourself. Your publisher, your organisation how many cases have been brought?
ADNAN OKTAR: That’s not too many either. It may have been reflected erroneously to the media.
BEN KNIGHT: Sorry?
ADNAN OKTAR: If have any document regarding this, please show it to me so that I may also learn. There is nothing like that. They are exaggerating.
BEN KNIGHT: This is good. We can clarify this now. How many cases?
ADNAN OKTAR: 3-5 at most. They are delibaretely making such a propaganda to show themselves as unjustly treated. They put these forward to give the impression of being unjustly treated and so to save themselves with pscyhological propaganda as if they have important ideas and we resort to every way to prevent their ideas. Their telling Darwinism only amuses people. It is like a comedy, show programme. If you notice, Dawkins also does no other than to amuse his audience. Youth would only joke with what a pagan priest tells. Therefore nobody holds back from his ideas. He gives the impression that we hold back from his ideas and prevent them with court. There’s no such a thing. Only that he insults and we stop him. His outdated ideas from the 1800s are already being taught in universities, in institutions, and with millions of books. They are already being presented everywhere in encyclopedias, magazines. These only amuse people. It’s not only Richard Dawkins who is telling Darwinism. Dawkins tells as if he is the only hero to tell Darwinism, there’s nothing like that. There are millions of people like Dawkins in the world, millions of professors, assistant professors, assistants. They all tell about Darwinism but people laugh away. So there’s no need for being a cheap hero.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. The court has convicted you’ve running a criminal organization what can you tell me about that?
ADNAN OKTAR: Our prosecutor, that is the prosecutor of the court, told in the case file that there is no evidence against me. Secondly, me and my friends were subjected to unimaginable torture in police custody. Consequently 16 of my friends have forensic medicine reports proving that they become physically disabled. We were subjected to torture of such a degree. If you were under such a torture, you would have also told them what they want you to tell. Whoever it may be, he would tell so. And so they made us tell by torture these words of crimes. That is, these writings are put forward as evidence. Furthermore the prosecutor told the court that they acquitted some friends of these people who were being tried by the same file and with the same accusations and same evidences, that hence they should give the same verdict to us. Yet the court convicted us with an addition of one more year. However, the police officers who tortured us and the ones that supported torture are imprisoned at the moment on accounts of being a member of the alleged Ergenokon Terror organization, that is to say, being a member of an alleged great deep state gang. Therefore the words that they forced us to tell by torture were regarded as evidence in court. The prosecutor told that they are invalid. However, that is the situation, now the file is at the Supreme Court of Appeals. It is at this stage.
BEN KNIGHT: So just to clarify Mr. Oktar, you say that you yourself personally was tortured.
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes. They applied electricity to both of my toes. That’s how I was tortured. Also they made us sit on the concrete floor and never let us sleep for a whole week, 7 days, our hands were cuffed behind and our eyes were blindfolded. They applied electricity to both of my thumb toes.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay and how many books have you sold overall?
ADNAN OKTAR: At least 100 million books were sold.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay, you must be a very wealthy men.
ADNAN OKTAR: I take no share of profit, no royalty fees.
BEN KNIGHT: You don’t make any money?
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes, the printing house takes it.
ADNAN OKTAR: But they use some of it for distributing books and the rest for their own costs.
BEN KNIGHT: And the rest of it?
ADNAN OKTAR: ... also for costs of the paper and printing, for the employee salaries, and of course they take share of profit.
BEN KNIGHT: So what is the publishing company do with the money?
ADNAN OKTAR: They make a living. The same holds for the publishing company that published Dawkins’ book as for ours.
BEN KNIGHT: So who owns the publishing company? Who owns the publishing company?
ADNAN OKTAR: Not one person I assume they have partners. Not one person.
BEN KNIGHT: Are you one of them?
ADNAN OKTAR: No, no. I have no relation with them. That is to say, I took not even one Turkish lira of money until now.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. How many books have you written?
ADNAN OKTAR: More than 300.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. They’re all written by you or do you have people help you write them?
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes, of course, I have a team of 30 people who are professors and assistant professors.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. Well I think we’re done. Thank you, thank you very much.
ADNAN OKTAR: I thank you.
BEN KNIGHT: Just in time too. So how long have you been writing?
ADNAN OKTAR: For about twenty years.
BEN KNIGHT: For about 20 years.
ADNAN OKTAR: My friends bring me all the information and photographs. I establish the connection between them, interpret and give them over to my friends concerned. I don’t interfere with the rest.
BEN KNIGHT: It’s a big thing to be taken on the world’s scientist etablishment without actually having done any formal training insides.
ADNAN OKTAR: Darwin was also like that. As you know he was not a scientist, he was an amateur biolog, I am an amateur biolog too.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay, thank you. So what are you writing about next?
ADNAN OKTAR: Now there are the new volumes of Atlas. Aolumes 5, 6 and 7. I study on them. As a matter of fact I am going to increase them up to 14 volumes because I have hundred thousands of photographs, I am trying to put them to good use. I am preparing a book on the history of Islam. I have so many studies on books. There is also one on the history of the prophets.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. How much is the Atlas sold for?
ADNAN OKTAR: Must be 20 Turkish lira. I assume it is 100 dollars in US.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. So it’s different pricing if you buy it in Turkey it’s 20 liras.
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes but there is a campaign, a discount campaign lately.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay. And how many people are there in your organization? Friends, followers, supporters...
ADNAN OKTAR: Yes, yes. Must be about 300 people.
BEN KNIGHT: And what does 300 people do? What does this organization do, what do they do, how do they fit in?
BEN KNIGHT: It’s in general, do they look to you as a religious teacher or...
ADNAN OKTAR: No as a friend, a writer, a researcher. That is I am only a servant of Allah.
BEN KNIGHT: Okay great. Thank you.
INTERVIEW WITH MR. ADNAN OKTAR BY ABC TELEVISION (AUSTRALIA) (10 November 2009)
