President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Israel was committing "state terrorism" amid the Israeli-Palestinian conflict while addressing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) parliamentary group meeting in the capital of Ankara Wednesday.
"I clearly say here: Israel is a terrorist state," Erdoğan, a defender of Palestinians oppressed by Israel, said.
Erdoğan called upon Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare Israel's nuclear arsenal. "Your end is nigh, anyway, whether you have nuclear weapons or not," Erdoğan said, to the thundering applause of his supporters.
Türkiye is spearheading efforts to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians trapped in besieged Gaza, where thousands have been killed since Oct. 7. Erdoğan has been the most vocal critic of Israel, which Türkiye extended an olive branch to in an effort to mend shattered ties before this new conflict broke out.
"We see Netanyahu flanked by ministers in his news conferences. He thinks these ministers will save him. Netanyahu is a goner," he said.
Erdoğan pointed out that Israel was pursuing a strategy of "destroying an entire city with its people" and was "a terrorist state." He lamented the fact that some members of the international community did not stand on the "right side" of the matter: "The West, particularly the United States, unfortunately, exhibits a different stance (than others criticizing Israel). For instance, France changed its stand. They act differently one day and backtrack the following day. Be honest. Be like Türkiye," he said, referring to President Macron's support for Israel mixed with his criticism of indiscriminate killings of Palestinians.
The president said the Israeli government had the unwavering support of the U.S. and Western countries, and relentlessly continued its massacres for 40 days, deliberately targeting schools, places of worship, hospitals and marketplaces.
He noted that it also deliberately bombed people it forced to leave their homes in its pursuit of "state terrorism." "They call Hamas a terrorist group. Hamas is a political party which won elections. You deprived them of their rights after they won the elections. Israel and the United States did this together," he said. Erdoğan has always been a champion of the Palestinian cause, but also adhered to Türkiye's good ties with Israel. Israel's attacks, which he earlier declared as war crimes, were the last straw for Erdoğan, who recently shelved a visit to restore relations with Israel, just one month after he met Netanyahu in New York.
Erdoğan said two-thirds of about 12,000 Gazans massacred by Israel were women and children, and that Israel was carrying out the most heinous attacks against civilians.
"War is not a word we can use to describe what is happening in Gaza. Even wars have ethics, laws and limits," he said. He said Israel was now talking about killing more than 2 million civilians with an atomic bomb. The Palestinian Authority has recently filed a complaint with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) against Israel over its minister's threat to drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza.
Last week, Israeli Heritage Minister Amichay Eliyahu, a member of the far-right Otzma Yehudit party, told Israeli media that dropping a "nuclear bomb" on Gaza is "an option." Eliyahu was later suspended from government meetings "until further notice," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said. Israel has long refused to publicly acknowledge whether it possesses nuclear weapons.
"Do you have an atomic bomb or not? I challenge Netanyahu to declare it, but I don't think he can. You can threaten people any way you can, but the end is near for Netanyahu," he said.
The president then screened a video about Israel's attacks on Gaza. "You see a genocide unfolding here. We will work to bring this case to the International Court of Justice," he said. He added that those remaining silent in the face of Israel's crimes against humanity are as "complicit in those crimes as the perpetrators."
"The blood of the children killed in Gaza is now a stain of shame for those supplying weapons, munitions and intelligence to Israel. Every day, hundreds of children are killed by bombs, but no one, from the European Union to the United States, no one claiming to defend human rights says a single word. Israel slaughters journalists, along with their families, while they are covering Israel's massacres, but international media does not cover it," he said.
Erdoğan also hit out at the United Nations Security Council, which "failed" at protecting the lives of Gazan civilians, "even their own employees." He said "a few countries" trampled on the will of the 121 countries who voted for the implementation of a cease-fire at the United Nations General Assembly.
"Israeli ministers say they have nuclear bombs, but IAEA does not take action. Those tolerating the burning of the Quran on the grounds that it is freedom of expression detain people with conscience who protest the massacre in Gaza," he said, referring to the detention of pro-Palestinian demonstrators in Western countries.
The president reiterated his call for world leaders to do something. "They marched in Paris after 23 people were killed in France (after the Charlie Hebdo attack in 2015). Now thousands of people were killed, but we don't see heads of state. This means (this conflict) is about conflict between The Cross and The Crescent," Erdoğan said.
