Erdogan calls on Israelis to oppose Gaza 'massacre'
Turkish prime minister calls IDF operations part of a wider campaign of "genocide" against Palestinian people.
By JPOST.COM STAFFPRIME MINISTER Erdogan and Hamas leader Haniyeh 311(photo credit: Reuters)
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a rare call directly on Israeli civilians to rise up and voice opposition to what he called Israel's "massacre" of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, after 26 Palestinians were reportedly killed during a long weekend of violence between Gaza and Israel.Speaking to his ruling AK Party on Sunday, the Turkish prime minister asked Israeli citizens, as "children of the Holocaust," to oppose IDF operations in the Gaza Strip."Turkey will continue to stand by the Palestinians, who have been suffering injustice for years now," Erdogan said, underling Ankara's deepening diplomatic support of Hamas and the Gaza Strip at the cost of its once-strong allegiance with Israel.Erdogan called IDF operations part of a wider campaign of "genocide" against the Palestinian people, which Israel has "systematically" carried out throughout the 20th century.Click here for special JPost coverageAt least 26 Gazans were killed and dozens wounded since last Friday, when Israel assassinated a Palestinian terrorist leader in the Strip, sparking an escalation in violence unseen since October of last year. Palestinians began firing rocket salvos at Israel on Friday, to which the IDF responded by bombing launching pads and weapons storehouses, many of which are located in densely populated areas in the Strip.Israel has for five days now tried to destroy the citizens of Gaza," the Turkish prime minister said, labeling the IDF's reaction to Palestinian rocket fire "terrorism."He called on Israelis to "demand the cessation of acts of terror against the Palestinians," according to Channel 2 news.
