Israel Reassessing Ties With Turkey After Being Called ‘War Criminal’
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
ISTANBUL/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Israel is reassessing its diplomatic relations with Turkey after its Islamist president called the Jewish nation “a war criminal or the world.”Israel is reassessing its diplomatic relations with Turkey after its Islamist president called the Jewish nation “a war criminal of the world.”
Recep Tayyip Erdogan blasted Israel over the weekend over its military actions in the Gaza Strip, which began on October 7 after Hamas gunmen killed 1,400 people in Israel.
Israel is a “war criminal to the world” that is committing an “open and despicable massacre” against Gazans in a fiery, pro-Hamas speech at a massive pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul organized by his AKP Party.
Erdogan, a longtime defender of Hamas who rejects the Western powers’ classification of Hamas as a terrorist organization, has ramped up his rhetoric against Israel.
“Israel has been openly committing war crimes for 22 days, but the Western leaders cannot even call on Israel for a ceasefire, let alone react to it,” Erdogan told the crowd in Istanbul, who waved Palestinian flags.
“Israel, we will proclaim you as a war criminal to the world,” Erdogan told his supporters. “We are making our preparations, and we will declare Israel to the world as a war criminal.”
SECURITY REASONS
Israel was recalling its diplomats from Turkey over “increasingly harsh statements” coming from the government in Ankara.
The Israeli government previously removed its diplomats from Turkey for security reasons.
But Israel’s Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that they were being ordered to pull out now for a “reassessment” of the ties between Turkey and Israel.
Cohen suggested a move that could sever the newly restored diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Political analysts said Erdogan was keen to reinforce his criticism of Israel’s bombardment of the Gaza Strip and to overshadow celebrations marking Turkey’s secular roots.
Modern Turkey’s 100th anniversary came Sunday, when newspaper headlines could be dominated by news of the Saturday rally rather than celebrations of the republic’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, analysts say.
‘FREEDOM FIGHTERS’
Erdogan, Turkey’s longest-serving leader, and his AK Party have eroded support for the Western-facing ideals of Ataturk, whom most Turks revere, critics say.
The president’s comments who called Hamas Palestinian “freedom fighters” aimed to benefit from anti-Israel sentiment domestically and consolidate Turkey’s Sunni conservatives, according to analysts.
Under Erdogan, devoted minority Christians also faced growing Islamic pressure.
Several several church leaders and missionaries in recent years, Worthy News monitored.
However, Erdogan’s portraits have increasingly appeared alongside those of Ataturk on government buildings and schools.
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