Turkish President Erdogan Threatens War With Israel, Claims Hamas 'Not a Terrorist Organization'
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivered a strong rebuke to Israel in a threatening speech delivered at a large pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul Saturday and seemed to imply that his nation could very well go to war over the conflict.
He said the West was the main culprit behind the Israel-Hamas war and that Israel was an “occupier.” He added a chilling threat: Turkish forces could "come at any night unexpectedly."
In comments that have prompted Israeli outcry, and led the country to withdraw its diplomatic presence, president Erdogan suggested assaults on Gaza constituted a "massacre".
In the same speech, he reportedly said that Turkey can "come at any night unexpectedly” to ecstatic reception from hundreds of thousands of attendees.
The footage, which is currently circulating on X, formerly known as Twitter, purportedly showed the pro-Palestine crowd responding with the chant: “Turkish military to Gaza.”
Watch:
One commentator reporting from the protest said this was “by far one of the strongest speeches that we’ve heard” from the Turkish president.
Erdogan continued and tried to claim that Hamas was not a terrorist group despite their savage October 7 surprise attack that purposely targeted innocent civilians:
“I reiterate that Hamas is not a terrorist organisation. Israel was very offended by this … Israel is an occupier, Erdogan speaks clearly because Turkey does not owe you anything,” he told hundreds of thousands of supporters on Saturday...
“The main culprit behind the massacre unfolding in Gaza is the West,” Erdogan said.
It's hard to understand how the West is responsible when Hamas slaughtered hundreds at a music festival, beheaded babies, and committed other inhuman atrocities. As pro-Palestinian protests crop up all over the world, this rhetoric will only add to the tensions.
As I reported earlier Sunday, Israel has dramatically expanded its military operations in the Gaza Strip and thousands are reported dead. However, most of the figures in the news are reported by Hamas, so as we discovered with the Israeli hospital bombing that wasn't, we can't trust their numbers.
Netanyahu said the war will not be over quickly:
Israel expanded its ground operations in the Gaza Strip Friday and Saturday as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned of a “long and hard” against Hamas and Israel Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said, “We are advancing in the stages of the war, according to our plan.”
As my colleague Becca Lower reported Saturday, the Jewish state has entered a new phase in the conflict and unleashed massive air bombardments and "the ground shook in Gaza." They also deployed tanks and infantry backed by massive strikes from the air and sea.
Tensions will be further ratcheted up by recent statements made by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh basically saying all the bloodshed was a good thing for his side:
I have said this before, and I say it time again: The blood of the women, children, and elderly… I am not saying that this blood is calling for your [help]. We are the ones who need this blood, so it awakens within us the revolutionary spirit, so it awakens within us resolve, so it awakens within us the spirit of challenge, and [pushes us] to move forward.
It looks like things are seriously deteriorating in the Middle East.
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