By Halil Fidan
IZMIR, Türkiye (AA) – A proposal to grant Türkiye’s western Izmir the status of sister city to Gaza was unanimously approved by the metropolitan council on Friday.
The decision was made during a regular city council meeting of the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality, presided over by Mayor Cemil Tugay.
The proposal, which received unanimous support from all political party groups, aimed to strengthen solidarity with Gazans while also showing support for the enclave.
Speaking at the council meeting, Tugay expressed his satisfaction with the decision, saying: "We will stand by the city that is subjected to oppression; this is what suits us."
"After going through the legal process, if Gaza also agrees, we will sign a sister city protocol with the enclave," he said.
"My heartfelt wish is for the attacks there to stop as soon as possible, for peace to be established, and for the rights of the people of Gaza and Palestine not to be violated in any way," he added.
Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
Over 37,300 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and over 85,100 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Over eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.
*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz