Both sides saying different things, Turkish president says on reported Israeli attack on Iran

By Faruk Zorlu

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said that both Israel and Iran have issued “different” statements regarding a reported Israeli attack on Iran early Friday and that there is a lack of clarity.

"Currently, Israel is saying different things, and Iran is likewise putting forward different views, that is, there is no ownership and there is no reasonable statement regarding what happened," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul.

Tension escalated between Iran and Israel on Saturday after Tehran launched a drone and missile attack in response to the April 1 attack on its consulate in Syria, which killed seven Iranian military officers, including two top-ranking commanders.

According to US media reports, Israel carried out a "limited strike" inside Iran early Friday morning. There have been no official comments from Israel yet.

Erdogan also criticized the US decision to veto Palestine's bid for full UN membership.

In the UN Security Council, “we saw the US standing with Israel by vetoing Palestine's full membership bid," he added.

"While everyone stands by Palestine (regarding its full membership in the UN), unfortunately, the US demonstrated its stance by siding with Israel," he said.

Furthermore, describing the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis's upcoming visit to Türkiye “as a sort of a return visit,” Erdogan said that the visit will be a “significant milestone” in bilateral relations.