Türkiye urges UN to recommend use of force for Gaza, similar to 1950 General Assembly resolution

By Muhammed Enes Calli

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday urged the UN General Assembly to immediately recommend the use of force for Gaza, similar to the a 1950 measure known as the Uniting for Peace resolution.

"Today, standing up for Palestine, Lebanon means standing up for the humanity, peace, and the culture of coexistence among different beliefs," Erdogan said after a Cabinet meeting in the Turkish capital Ankara.

"A handful of radical Zionists, blinded by blood and hatred, are setting the region and the whole world on fire. We will never consent to this cruelty and barbarism," he said about Israel’s continuing attacks on Gaza, the West Bank, and Lebanon.

He added that standing up for Palestine and Lebanon means standing up for "humanity, peace, and the culture of coexistence among different beliefs."

"Islamic countries should have the biggest reaction to oppression in the Gaza, West Bank, and Lebanon. As Muslims, we need to lead the world in curbing oppression," he added.

The Uniting for Peace resolution, passed in November 1950, says that in any cases where the Security Council, due to a lack of agreement among its five permanent members, does not act as needed for the sake of international security and peace, the General Assembly can issue appropriate recommendations to UN members for collective measures, including the use of armed force when necessary.

Erdogan has frequently criticized the UN Security Council’s failure to act over the last year as Israel killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and also launched massive airstrikes in Lebanon in recent weeks.

On Turkish humanitarian assistance to Lebanon, Erdogan said Türkiye delivered 30 tons of humanitarian aid to embattled Lebanon on Wednesday and will continue to do so as long as security conditions permit.

Since Sept. 23, Israel has launched massive airstrikes against what it calls Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, killing more than 960 people and injuring over 2,770 others, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

Several Hezbollah leaders have been killed in the assault, including the group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 41,600 people, most of them women and children, following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last October.

The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the Gaza conflict into a wider regional war.