Türkiye’s foreign minister says US support enables Israel's actions in Gaza

By Seda Sevencan

ISTANBUL (AA) – Türkiye’s foreign minister highlighted the role of US support in enabling Israel's actions in Gaza, which border on genocide.

Hakan Fidan made the remarks while speaking to the Turkish news channel NTV on Wednesday while discussing foreign policy.

Pointing to the fundamental disparity in the stance between Türkiye and the US over the Gaza war, Fidan said the US unconditionally supports Israel regarding Gaza while Türkiye has unconditionally supported Palestine from the outset.

He said it is important for a state to be able to distinguish between areas of conflict and cooperation in its relations with other states while noting that Ankara and Washington also cooperate in certain areas such as NATO and some technology issues.

“In the Gaza issue, in the Palestinian issue, it is not possible for Israel to act with such audacity, verging on genocide, without the unconditional military and political support of the US. The US makes this possible,” he said.

Fidan also acknowledged that Ankara and Washington currently share common ground on the necessity of a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip and the urgent provision of humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave.

Fidan said they also agree that without a two-state solution, the issue will persist as a recurring problem.

Regarding the genocide case filed by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice, he pointed out that South Africa is the country best suited for doing this because of its history of overcoming a racist apartheid regime and firsthand experience with oppression.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack on Oct. 7 last year by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas which killed about 1,200 people.

More than 35,200 Palestinians have since been killed in the Gaza Strip, mostly women and children, and over 79,000 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

In the West Bank, nearly 500 Palestinians have been killed and thousands injured since then, along with daily arrest campaigns by the Israeli army.

Israel is accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure that its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.