Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his US counterpart Donald Trump’s plan to seize the Gaza Strip in agreement with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he described as a “murderer,” is a serious threat to world peace.
In an interview with Indonesia’s Narasi TV broadcast on Thursday, Erdogan stressed that no one can take the Gaza Strip from the hands of the Palestinians, adding that the audacity to do such a thing constitutes a threat to world peace.
He added: “I do not find Mr. Trump’s current actions, statements, and challenges to many countries in the world correct, and I do not see these developments as good,” expressing his hope that the United States, which he described as the world’s superpower, would quickly back down from these mistakes.
He pointed out that Trump’s plan to seize the Gaza Strip cannot be accepted by Turkey or the Islamic world, and Erdogan confirmed that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation will take a stand against this plan.
He stressed that countries such as Indonesia, Turkey and Pakistan cannot remain idle on this issue, adding: “If it is necessary to support world peace, the United States is primarily responsible for that.”
Erdogan continued: “A country like the United States must be on the side of world peace, we are striving to be on its side.”
He explained that Indonesia, Pakistan and Malaysia share the same views with Turkey regarding world peace, and that Ankara will continue to work to achieve this.
He added: “Syria has been subjected to great destruction, as well as Palestine, hospitals and schools have been destroyed, and we as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation see this as an inhumane approach and an inhumane act.”
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President Erdogan described Netanyahu as a “gangster” who evades the judiciary in Israel and the decisions of the International Criminal Court, and stressed that Turkey respects the decision of the International Criminal Court regarding Netanyahu’s arrest, and is waiting for this decision to be implemented on the ground.
On November 21, 2024, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Erdogan pointed out that the United States’ defiance of this matter is a stance against international justice, and continued: “Washington’s stance on the decisions of the International Criminal Court is unacceptable.
We are on the side of justice, and we insist and will continue to insist on the necessity of respecting the decisions of the International Court.”
He added: “Can we say that Israel is a democratic regime at the present time? It has become a completely authoritarian state, and threatens countries with the weapons and bombs in its possession.”
The Turkish president stressed that the support provided by the United States to Israel has nothing to do with democracy.
He said that “Washington has unfortunately sided with terrorist Israel. Israel, thanks to the support it receives from Washington, is constantly threatening Palestine.”
President Erdogan recalled that Israel used phosphorus bombs in the Palestinian territories and killed more than 51,000 civilians there.
With American support, between October 7, 2023 and January 19, 2025, Israel committed genocide in Gaza, leaving about 160,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 14,000 missing.
