Erdogan, who heads the ruling AKP (Justice and Development Party), addressed thousands of people who gathered at the Great Palestine Rally in Istanbul, waving Turkish and Palestinian flags and chanting slogans against israel.
The Turkish leader expressed solidarity with the Palestinians, who have been under a brutal Israeli siege and bombardment for more than three weeks, killing over 7,700 people, mostly civilians, in the Gaza Strip.
Erdogan defended Hamas, the resistance movement that controls Gaza and launched an operation against zionist targets on October 7. He said Hamas was not a terrorist organization, but a liberation movement fighting to protect its land and people.
He also emphasized that israeli leaders had a secret agenda to redraw the borders of Türkiye and other countries in the region, citing a “map of betrayal” that he said emerged from their statements.
He challenged israel’s legitimacy as a state, calling it an occupier and an organization. He said Türkiye owed nothing to israel, unlike the West, which he said was complicit in its atrocities.
He lambasted the West for its double standards and silence over the killings of innocent children in Gaza, while shedding “crocodile tears” for the victims of the Ukraine-Russia war.
He warned that the West was trying to revive a “crescent-crusader struggle” in the Middle East, but said Türkiye was ready to resist.
He said Türkiye was working to expose Israel as a war criminal to the world and called for an immediate ceasefire and negotiations for the release of hostages. He urged Muslim countries to unite and support Palestine.
He ended his speech by asking the crowd if they were ready to defend Gaza with their teeth, and said: “Israel was doomed to be alone in the world after losing a vote at the United Nations for a ceasefire. 13-14 countries sided with Israel. So, Israel, you are doomed to be alone in the world.” (ILKHA)