Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan today called Israel a “Zionist terrorist organisation” over its attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, and repeated his criticism of Western powers, namely the United States, over the support given to Israel, Reuters reports.
Speaking to lawmakers from his ruling AK Party in parliament, Erdogan also said the cross-border fire between Israel and Iran in recent days had heightened the risk of a regional conflict.
Erdogan has been critical of israel’s policy in Gaza since the start of the genocidal war in OCtober last year.
Addressing the UN general Assembly last month, Erdogan drew parallels between the actions of Israel in Gaza and Lebanon, and the Nazi Third Reich.
“Just as Hitler was stopped by an alliance of humanity 70 years ago, Netanyahu and his murder network must be stopped by an alliance of humanity,” said the Turkish president. “The UN General Assembly’s authority to recommend the use of force should be considered.”
Earlier this month he said that the international community cannot remain silent over Israel’s “rampage” that is pushing the entire region “into fire”.
“A handful of extremist Zionists blinded by hatred are throwing our region and the entire world into fire, and we will never accept this injustice and this barbarism,” explained Erdogan. “The UN General Assembly should recommend the use of force, in line with a resolution it passed in 1950, if the UN Security Council fails to stop Israel’s attacks in Gaza and Lebanon.”