A
Victoria's Secret lingerie model has sparked outrage after she was
filmed seemingly endorsing a terrorist group which plotted to murder
Pope John Paul II.
A
shock video has emerged of Brazilian beauty Adriana Lima appearing to
support Turkish terror group the Grey Wolves, responsible for killing
hundreds of people in Turkey in the last four decades.
In
the grainy mobile phone footage recorded in a gym, the stunning
brunette, 34, is recorded saying the word Bozkurtlar - the Turkish word
for wolves, giving a symbolic Grey Wolves hand gesture and howling.
Beauty: A video has emerged of Victoria's Secret Angel Adriana Lima appearing to support the Grey Wolves
Mother-of-two: Ms Lima can be heard saying the word Bozkurtlar - the Turkish word for wolves - in the footage
Shock video: Ms Lima (left and right) gives a symbolic Grey Wolves hand gesture and howls in the video footage released online
Today her spokesman said the underwear model had been duped into giving the terror salute.
They said she met a boxer from Turkey in Miami who told her the hand gesture and howl was the symbol for his local gym.
Ms Lima, a mother-of-two, has modelled for Armani, Versace, Louis Vuitton, and Marc Jacobs.
Last year she was named by Forbes as the second highest-paid supermodel in the world with earnings of more than £5million.
She
ended her four-year marriage to Serbian NBA player Marko Jaric last
year. She has previously been linked to Justin Bieber and was once
engaged to Lenny Kravitz.
The
video, which was posted online, appears to have been shot in a gym and
the men she is with thank her for appearing in front of the camera.
The Grey Wolves is the militant arm of political opposition group in Turkey, the right-wing National Movement Party.
Formed
in the 1960s, the Grey Wolves - described by experts as violent and
neo-fascist - was turned into a 'death squad' in the 1970s and have been
responsible for hundreds of political assassinations in the past four
decades.
In
1981, the group tried to murder Pope John Paul II. The Pope was left
critically injured when several shots were fired at him from close range
in St Peter's Square, Rome.
Big
time: Ms Lima, a mother-of-two, has modelled for Armani, Versace, Louis
Vuitton, and Marc Jacobs, as well as lingerie giant Victoria's Secret
Crowds of people make the salute made during a right-wing National Movement Party rally earlier this year
In 1981, the group tried to murder
Pope John Paul II when several shots were fired at him from close range
in St Peter's Square, Rome
In
the late 1970s, the militant group carried out a series of bomb attacks
and shootings on public officials, journalists, students, lawyers,
left-wing activists and ethnic Kurds.
In 1979, the same member who tried to kill the Pope, assassinated journalist Abdi Ipekci in 1979.
The
Grey Wolves was also blamed for the Maraş massacre in 1978, which
resulted in the deaths of a left-wing group of people called Alevis.
In
the 1990s, the Grey Wolves killed two people opposed to their ideas.
And last month, the group was said to be behind attacks on Korean
tourists in Turkey.
Turkish
nationalists were protesting against China's treatment of Yighur
Muslims, but some Koreans were mistaken for being Chinese and were
attacked.
The
far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) is informally known as the
Grey Wolves due to its unofficial parliamentary youth arm.
Last year Ms Lima was named by Forbes as the second highest-paid supermodel in the world with earnings of more than £5million
Supermodel: Ms Lima was wrongly told that the word 'Bozkurtlar' was the name of the gym
The
footage has prompted anger in Turkey, particularly among the Kurdish
community, which has previously been targeted by the group.
Kurdish
rights campaigner, Mark Campbell, told MailOnline: 'It's sad and
depressing that such a famous person is giving credit to such a racist,
fascist ideology.
'The
Grey Wolves is a fascist organisation. They are extreme Turkish
nationalists who partake in street violence, mainly against Kurdish
people in Turkey. It is a very unsavoury group.
'The
salute is extremely offensive. It's an incredibly scary thing - it's a
symbol of of trying to show their dominance over the Kurds.'
Ms
Lima’s spokesman today told MailOnline the Brazilian had been tricked -
adding: 'The video was prompted and taped by a Turkish boxer who
visited Adriana's local gym in Miami earlier this summer.
'She was told the hand signal and call-out were the names of his local gym.
‘She was unaware of the wider context of what she was doing or its association to a political group.
‘Adriana
has no affiliation to any political party in Turkey and unequivocally
denies any implied association to these organizations.
‘She
is personally disappointed that her good will was taken advantage of to
create a video, released without her knowledge or consent, that upsets
any community.'
Adriana Lima. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
