Israel uses regional conflicts as excuses for occupation: Turkish President Erdogan

By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday accused Israel of using regional conflicts as pretexts to justify its escalating "occupation and expansion."

“Yemen, Syria, and Iran are merely excuses,” said Erdogan. “The Israeli government produces new justifications daily to legitimize its occupation and invasion policies,” he added, speaking at a ruling party event in Istanbul.

Erdogan said Western nations are ignoring Israel's actions due to guilt over the Holocaust. He called on Israel’s unconditional supporters to act "rationally" and stop enabling its actions.

Erdogan also underlined the Palestinian resistance to Israel’s treatment of Palestinians since last Oct. 7, nearly a year ago, when Israeli’s deadly offensive on Gaza began. “Our brothers in Gaza have been resisting Zionist occupiers heroically for 364 days despite all hardships,” he said.

Stressing Türkiye’s stance, Erdogan said Ankara will continue to support Gaza with all possible means.

“We stand firmly in the same place today as we stood on the first day. We defend the same values today that we defended on the first day,” he said.

Türkiye never hesitates to say the same things at the podium of the UN as it tells the domestic public, Erdogan added.

​Türkiye is the only state to impose economic sanctions on Israel, he said.​​​​​​​