abstract:Alevism (Alevîlik) is a religious group combining Anatolian folk Shi'ism with Sufi elements such as those of the Bektashi tariqa, with some schools drawing influence from Tengrism and/or Zoroastrianism. Believers live almost entirely in Turkey, with minorities in Albania, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Crimea, Croatia, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Tatarstan, Vojvodina, and the Turkish Diaspora.
In a speech, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a Sunni, accused the leader of the country's opposition, an Alevi, of being in sympathy with Syria's president.