Erdogan slams Netanyahu for 'daring' to join Paris march

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for “daring” to attend a rally to denounce terrorism in Paris on Sunday, accusing him of leading “state terrorism”, the Anadolu Agency reported.

Speaking at a joint press conference with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas in Ankara yesterday, Erdogan said: “How can you see this individual, who carries out state terrorism by massacring 2,500 people in Gaza, waving his hand? He is waving his hand as if people are very enthusiastically waiting for him.”

He said he could “hardly understand how he [Netanyahu] dared to go” to Sunday’s massive march in the French capital and urged him to “give an account for the children, women you massacred”.

Erdogan said the Palestinian cause is the main problem in the Middle East and a “wound” in humanity’s conscious, pointing out that achieving a lasting peace in the region depends on the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state on the 1967 borders.

The Turkish premier criticised the UN Security Council and accused it of failing to perform its duties towards Israel’s arrogance which increases tension in the region.

He stressed the need to end the Israeli occupation soon, noting that Turkey’s greatest aspiration is to see the establishment of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with its capital in East Jerusalem.

The Turkish president accused the West of hypocrisy, saying: “The West’s hypocrisy is obvious. As Muslims, we’ve never taken part in terrorist massacres. Behind these lie racism, hate speech and Islamophobia.”

“Please, the administrations in those countries where our mosques are attacked need to take measures. Games are being played with the Islamic world, we need to be aware of this,” Erdogan said.