“I firmly distance myself from any kind of extremism” – Antonio Rudiger defends himself amid the claims of the head of the media

Antonio Rudiger has been in the news in recent days, after Julian Reichelt – former Editor-in-Chief of digital BILD between 2017 and 2021 – accused the defender of Real Madrid of making a gesture linked to the terrorist organization State Islamic, also known as IS. in an Instagram post.

Rudiger, as well as the German Football Association (DfB), have since taken legal action against Reichelt, and now the 31-year-old has issued a statement on the matter, in which he has vehemently denied any links to groups extremists, as per Relief.

“On the occasion of the beginning of Lent, I published a snapshot on Instagram. It has already been publicly visible for 13 days (since March 11) and has reached several million interactions without any criticism from anyone, but in in recent days the photo has been used by individuals to make unfounded accusations.

“The gesture I used is called tawhid fingering. In Islam, this is considered a symbol of the unity and uniqueness of God. The gesture is spread among Muslims all over the world and in recent days the Federal Ministry of the Interior has classified it as not problematic. 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 am for peace and tolerance.”

In the midst of the ongoing legal case, Rudiger will try to focus his mind again Real Madrid matters, as he prepares to face the Athletic Club this weekend with the rest of his teammates.