Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also criticized Western allies for their unconditional support of Israel, saying they do not even try to push for a ceasefire.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan used the momentous platform of a rally to celebrate his country’s 100th anniversary to accuse Israel of committing war crimes and lambaste Western allies for their responses. 'Israel has been openly committing war crimes for 22 days, but the Western leaders cannot even call on Israel for a ceasefire, let alone react to it,' Erdogan told the crowd in Istanbul, who waved Palestinian flags.
In a speech before the Turkish parliament on Wednesday, Erdogan called Hamas 'a group of mujahideen defending their lands,' Israeli outlet TPS reported. Turkey’s position is a sharp break with the rest of its NATO allies, but it has not considered Hamas a terrorist organization — a designation that the U.S., the European Union and several countries in the Middle East support. Turkey also has ties to Hamas, hosting some of its members and facilitating investment for to the group.
Turkey 'will protect its principles and share these with the international community, but it needs to do this with a more delicate diplomacy if it expects to play such a diplomatic role,' Ulgen told Reuters. Reuters contributed to this report.
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