ALBAWABA - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan harshly condemned Israel's continuing military assault in Gaza during his speech at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on Saturday. He called the nation a "terror state" and warned that world silence on the crisis amounts to collaboration in war crimes.
Erdogan charged Israel of genocide and egregious violations of international law and fundamental human rights in his keynote speech. He maintained that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on 1967 boundaries is a prerequisite for Middle East peace and that no one has the authority to label the Palestinian resistance as terrorism.
Erdogan also denounced Israeli strikes in Syria and Lebanon, saying that Tel Aviv was manipulating sectarian and ethnic tensions to cause instability in the area. He underlined that Turkey opposes any effort to compromise Syria's territorial integrity and issued a dire warning: "Anyone who seeks to make Syrians suffer again will pay the price."
The Turkish leader also criticized the present international system, claiming that it is ineffectual when it comes to serious humanitarian issues. "The world is bigger than five," he said, referring to the permanent members of the UN Security Council, as he urged a more just global order.
Erdogan emphasized Turkey's commitment to using diplomacy to resolve disputes, saying Ankara is still in favor of peaceful solutions in Syria, Gaza, Libya, and Ukraine. He emphasized Turkey's humanitarian concerns and restated its goal of creating a "belt of peace" in the area, saying, "We are not after anyone's land." People are more important to us than riches.
