Turkish diplomatic sources said that Ankara supports Palestine obtaining full membership in the United Nations.

The sources said on Wednesday that Palestine must obtain the approval of the UN Security Council and the support of two-thirds of the members of the UN General Assembly for its full membership.

It indicated that Algeria will submit a draft resolution for Palestine to gain full membership during the next UN Security Council meeting.

It pointed out that the issue has not been presented to the Council until today due to expectations that the United States of America will use its veto power against the draft law.

It stated that “Washington intends to use its veto against the draft resolution that Algeria will submit.”

The sources confirmed that “recent developments show that the issue of recognizing a Palestinian state is enjoying increasing support in the international community.”

It added: “Turkey has always been one of the strongest supporters of this issue and was a pioneer in Palestine obtaining the status of an observer member by the General Assembly’s decision in 2012, and during this stage we will also support the recognition of Palestine in all our meetings.”

The American administration had indicated its intention to use its veto power if Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations was proposed.

Earlier Wednesday, the US representative to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said that she “does not believe that full membership of Palestine in the United Nations will help achieve a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.”

Palestine obtained the status of a non-member observer state at the United Nations after a resolution adopted by the General Assembly by a large majority on November 29, 2012.

Palestine applied for full membership in the United Nations in 2011, but this application did not receive the necessary support in the UN Security Council.

On April 2, the Permanent Representative of Palestine to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, sent a letter to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, requesting that the membership application be reconsidered.

The Security Council will vote on Thursday on a draft resolution regarding Palestine gaining full membership in the United Nations instead of “non-member observer” status.

Obtaining full membership requires the approval of 9 member states of the Security Council (15 countries), provided that none of the five veto countries, namely the United States, Russia, France, Britain, and China, object.

If the Council approves, the membership application will be referred to the General Assembly, and it must obtain two-thirds of the votes of the Assembly, which is composed of 193 countries, 139 of which recognize the State of Palestine.

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Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Wednesday that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a major player who is respected in the region and the entire world.

This came in a press conference held in Poland, in which he participated via video conference technology.

Kuleba added, “We do not reject the intervention of any country that wishes to contribute to ending the war between us and Russia.”

He expressed his country’s desire for everyone, including China, Turkey and other countries, to participate in the peace summit scheduled to be held to end the war.

Kuleba continued, saying: “So far, Turkey is the only country capable of talking to the Russian and Ukrainian sides.”

He added, “We are now focusing on holding a peace summit that will bring everyone together and discuss outstanding issues such as nuclear security, freedom of navigation, commercial navigation, and the exchange of prisoners, which no one can oppose.”

Kuleba refused to accuse his country of involvement in the terrorist attack that occurred in the Russian capital last Friday.

He explained that Russia is doing everything it can to distort Ukraine’s image.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Russian authorities announced that the death toll from the terrorist attack that took place in a concert hall in Crocus City in the capital, Moscow, had risen to 140 dead and 360 injured.

Russia witnessed a national mourning on Sunday for the victims of the terrorist attack, and flags were flown at half-mast, while Moscow residents placed flower bouquets in the Crocus Hall, where gunmen opened fire.

The Federal Security Service reported in a statement on Monday the arrest of 11 people, including 4 terrorists directly involved in the attack, and that efforts are continuing to identify their accomplices.​​​​​​

On Tuesday, the head of the Federal Security Service, Alexander Bortnikov, accused the United States, Britain, and Ukraine of being behind the attack, but the terrorist organization ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack on Friday.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that the hypocrisy of Western countries that support Israel with ammunition so that it can commit its massacres has turned Gaza into the largest cemetery for children and women in the world.

This came in a speech during his participation in the “Old Friends Iftar” event in Istanbul.

President Erdogan explained that “Turkey is defending its brothers in Gaza with all its capabilities, and lies and attempts at misinformation cannot cover up this fact.”

He added, “International institutions and organizations failed again in Gaza, and we must admit that the Islamic world did not pass this test well.”

President Erdogan pointed out that “Israel is not alone. It is an equation made up of dozens of supporters behind it.”

He added, “We admire the minds and consciences of those who believe that Israel is just a country on its own. But the truth is that Israel also represents a completely different equation with the United States, Britain, Germany, France, and dozens of other supporters behind it.”

Erdogan stressed that Muslims welcomed the holy month of Ramadan this year with a heavy heart because of what is happening in the Gaza Strip and the occupied Palestinian territories.

He added: “Gaza is witnessing one of the most horrific operations of genocide, as nearly 40,000 of our brothers were martyred, most of them children and women, 73,000 others were injured, and more than 7,000 innocent people are still languishing under the rubble.”

He continued: “Many efforts were made, and many initiatives were taken by international institutions. But all these diplomatic efforts did not have the expected effect in confronting Israel’s corruption, arrogance, and lawlessness.”

Erdogan expressed his belief that the sooner the Islamic world carries out self-criticism publicly, the better it will be for the Palestinian people and the entire Islamic nation.

He stressed that the humanitarian aid sent by Turkey to Gaza, which exceeded 40 thousand tons, will continue.

He added: “Just as Turkey embraced its neighbors during the Iran-Iraq war, and just as it did not turn its back on any of its brothers from the Caucasus and the Crimean Peninsula, today it supports its brothers in Gaza by all means.”

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The tourist season began in Muğla Province, southwestern Turkey, on Saturday, receiving the first convoy of tourists from Britain.

A reception was held at Dalaman Airport in the state for the first tourist convoy arriving by plane from Britain with 189 tourists on board.

After the reception and presentation of flowers, the British tourists moved to the hotels in the tourist city of Dalaman in Muğla Province.

In a press statement, Dalaman Airport Executive Director Yigit Lachin said that the first flight of the new tourist season arrived from Britain.

He explained that the tourist convoy started from the British city of Manchester and landed in the city of Dalaman and included 189 tourists.

According to data from the Airport Operating Authority in Turkey, Dalaman Airport received and deposited 77,722 passengers last January who arrived and traveled on board 1,256 aircraft.

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the European Union is not an alternative to NATO.

This is with regard to European security, emphasizing the importance of Türkiye to NATO’s southern wing.

This came in statements he made to reporters on Thursday, prior to the meeting of NATO defense ministers in the Belgian capital, Brussels.

Stoltenberg also expressed his welcome for European members of NATO to make more investments in the field of defense, which NATO has called for for many years.

He pointed out that NATO also calls on its European allies to invest more in advanced capabilities and make more of their forces highly prepared.

He explained that the allies in Europe are responding to this matter, “but this is not an alternative to NATO, but rather a way to strengthen it.”

He stressed the need not to resort to any means that suggest that the alliance is trying to separate Europe from North America.

Stoltenberg pointed out that the share of allied countries other than European Union countries in NATO’s defense expenditures amounts to 80 percent.

 In addition, he stated, “It’s not just about resources but also about geography.

If you look to the south you will see Turkey, which is not a member of the European Union but is important to our southern flank.”

He stressed that there are countries such as Norway and Iceland in the north, and although they are not major military powers, they are important in terms of transatlantic communication.

The United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom are not members of the European Union, but they are important to Europe’s security.

 He continued: “Therefore, the strength of NATO lies in our bringing Europe and North America together.”

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Algeria called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council next Wednesday regarding the decision of the International Court of Justice regarding the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip since last October 7.

On January 26, the court and the highest judicial body in the United Nations ordered Israel to take measures to prevent acts of “genocide” against the Palestinians and improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, but they did not order a ceasefire.

The official Algerian News Agency reported on Saturday evening that the Security Council meeting aims to “give compulsory action to the decision of the International Court of Justice regarding the temporary measures imposed on the Zionist occupation regarding its aggression against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.”

She added that the Algerian mission to the United Nations “initiated extensive consultations to prepare for the Security Council meeting, where a small meeting was held at the mission’s (headquarters).

In addition to Algeria’s permanent representative to the United Nations, it included representatives of Palestine and South Africa (the applicant for the lawsuit against Israel in the court).”

Following this meeting, the representative of Algeria, Ammar Benjameh, participated in an emergency meeting of the Arab Group in New York to consider the practical steps needed to be taken following the court’s decision, according to the agency.

On the day the court’s decision was issued, based in The Hague, Netherlands, Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune directed his country’s mission in New York to request a Security Council meeting.

Since the beginning of this January, Algeria has been a non-permanent member of the Council for a period of two years among ten non-permanent members, while there are five permanent member states that have veto power, namely the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia.

Since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, the United States has prevented the issuance of resolutions in the Council that it considers to be biased against its ally, Israel.

Washington also supports Tel Aviv’s position of rejecting a permanent ceasefire, claiming that it will allow the Hamas movement to rearrange its ranks.

As of Saturday, the Israeli war in Gaza had left “26,257 martyrs and 64,797 injured, most of them children and women,” according to the Palestinian authorities.

It also caused massive destruction and scarcity of food, water, and medicine, with the displacement of about two million Palestinians, meaning more than 85 percent of the Gaza Strip’s population, according to the United Nations.

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Turkey attracted direct international investments worth one billion and 188 million dollars last October.

This was stated in the “Bulletin on International Direct Investments in Numbers” published by the Association of International Investors (YASED) on Monday.

Direct international investments that flowed into Turkey in October amounted to $1.188 billion, of which $664 million were investment capital flows, $223 million in real estate sales to foreign citizens, and $345 million in debt instruments.

In October 2023, European Union countries maintained their position as the largest supplier of investment capital flows to Turkey, with a share of 69 percent, according to the bulletin.

France ranked first as the largest supplier of investment capital flows to Turkey, with 25 percent of total investments, followed by the Netherlands with 21 percent, then the United Arab Emirates with 16 percent, Germany with 15 percent, and Britain with 9 percent.

The bulletin also indicated that the volume of direct international investments during 10 months of this year amounted to $7.8 billion.

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “is no longer someone we can talk to in any way.”

This came in statements to reporters on board the plane during his return from Kazakhstan following his participation in the summit of the Turkish Organization of States on Friday.

President Erdogan pointed out that “Netanyahu is personally primarily responsible” for the attacks on Gaza, and “the Israeli interior is currently witnessing statements against him.”

He continued, “Netanyahu is a person who also arouses the anger of the Israeli people. He has lost the support of his citizens and is seeking to garner support for the massacres by using religious expressions.”

He added, “Netanyahu is no longer someone we can talk to in any way. We erased him and cast him aside.”

He continued: “Israel has taken a very wrong step. I can say that it has darkened its future with this step. This is a situation that not only disturbs Israel, but also its extensions abroad, so what it must do is to retract this step and stop it.”

In response to a question about the intense diplomatic movement he is leading to stop the Israeli attacks on Gaza, Erdogan indicated that they have held many meetings in this regard.

He stated that Turkey will participate in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, this November.

He said in the same context, “We also have a visit to Uzbekistan next week. These are important visits at a very critical time. Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi will come (to Turkey) at the end of this month and we will meet him.”

He added, “I attach importance to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit in Riyadh. We will press for a ceasefire.”

The Turkish President stressed the importance of the position of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation countries in this regard.

Erdogan pointed out that he seeks to “stop the bloodshed” by holding meetings with everyone, which “will continue in the coming days as well.”

He pointed out that the international community, “unable to curb Israel’s lawless approach, primarily ignores its principles.”

He continued, “As if ignoring the massacre of the Palestinians is not enough, they are entering into an embrace race with Israel and encouraging it to kill more children.”

He said: “Western countries that bow their heads when reminded of previous massacres that they turned a blind eye to will be crushed under the shame of their positions regarding the Gaza massacres.”

Erdogan asked, “We shout: Where is justice? Where are the international organizations that were established to maintain peace? Where are the human rights defenders?”

He said, “The world order and international law now face a difficult test.”

He continued: “If Israel is not stopped and held accountable for its actions, people’s already diminished confidence in international law and the global order will disappear. We will do our best to implement international law and punish war crimes.”

Erdogan pointed out that “the human tragedy in the occupied Palestinian territories, especially Gaza, was on the agenda of the Turkish Organization of States summit.”

He added, “We exchanged views on how to stop the bloodshed and contribute to lasting peace.”

He reiterated his emphasis that Turkey can play the role of a guarantor state in Gaza within the framework of the guarantors mechanism proposed by Ankara.

Erdogan said, “If Greece is a guarantor state in Cyprus, and Britain is as well, and Turkey is also a guarantor state of course, then why is there not a similar mechanism in Gaza?”

He continued, “We, as Turkey, must assume a leadership role in this regard, and this will be a development that will shape history, the present, and the future.”

President Erdogan noted that nearly a month had passed since the attacks began and said, “At the present time, we see that the developments will move the situation further against Israel.”

He pointed out that “Israel did not take this brutal step relying only on its strength, but also on Western support.”

He added that “the United States should be evaluated as part of the West.”

He continued, “The entire West, especially the United States, currently stands with Israel.”

Erdogan stressed Turkey’s desire “to see Gaza as a region enjoying tranquility as an integral part of the independent, geographically integrated State of Palestine on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

He added, “All our efforts are directed toward Gaza and a Palestine that enjoys tranquility, where people are not killed or displaced, and hospitals, streets, schools, and places of worship are not bombed.”

The Turkish President said that he informed all the leaders he spoke with that “unless a just and lasting peace is established in the region, it will not enjoy calm.”

He pointed out that “even countries that turn a blind eye to Israel’s massacres and stand behind them and do not hesitate to violate the values they defend also realize this.”

Erdogan affirmed Turkey’s support for initiatives that bring stability and peace to the region, saying, “We do not support plans that target the lives of Palestinians and seek to remove them from the stage of history.”

He added, “Formulas that would make Israel, which kills civilians without batting an eyelid and rains bombs on infants and wounded in hospitals, more reckless, are not a solution for us, but rather are the source of the absence of a solution.”

Erdogan criticized “some countries that tolerate elements of terrorist organizations under the guise of freedom of expression.”

He said that these countries (he did not name them) “tried to ban the Palestinian flag, which is a symbol of a people.”

He continued: “Despite all the bans and obstacles on the streets of Europe, people are demanding justice in the squares.”

He called on the world to “hear the cries of Palestinian children.”

He added, “We strive for Palestinian children to be able to live in peace like other children in the world and to live in a better world without worrying about their security.”

He continued, “The world cannot ignore their (children’s) desire to live freely and in peace in their land. We will continue to remind them of this and extend a helping hand to them.”

The Turkish President stressed that “extending a helping hand to these innocent and persecuted people is a debt on our shoulders and a humanitarian duty.”

He added: “Israel, which is deliberately trying to cause the collapse of the health system in Gaza, and the international community, which turns a blind eye to injustice, have left civilians, the sick, and infants (in Gaza) to die.”

He pointed out that the humanitarian conditions in Gaza are getting worse, and said, “Our priority now is for all aid sent to Gaza to arrive, but Israel does not allow that.”

He continued: “We have made all our preparations, from establishing field hospitals to sending hospital ships to treat patients. We are even continuing our work on transporting the wounded and sick to Turkey. We will not leave Gaza alone and desperate.”

He stated, “The vote at the United Nations (on the Israeli attacks on Gaza) was very important. In fact, this vote was like a school certificate that revealed Israel’s failure and failure.”

At the end of last October, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on Gaza calling for an immediate and sustainable humanitarian truce. 120 countries voted in favor of the resolution, 14 opposed it, while 45 countries abstained from voting.

Erdogan criticized the European Union’s position on the Israeli attacks on Gaza, saying that it “played a strange and very inconsistent role during this period and did not adopt a fair approach.”

He asked, “What is the European Union’s plan to resolve the (Palestinian-Israeli) crisis?”

He pointed out that Europe is currently witnessing the writing of “the history of double standards, unprincipledness and illegality.”

In a related context, Erdogan stressed that “Israeli arrogance has no origin in any of the divine religions.”

Addressing Netanyahu, he added, “What you are doing has nothing to do with what was stated in the Bible or what was stated in the Torah, and these two books or the Psalms do not accept it.”

Erdogan confirmed that “Turkish Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Kalin is communicating with the Israeli and Palestinian sides and with Hamas as well.”

He revealed that there is no communication between him and Netanyahu currently.

He explained that “it is not included in international diplomacy to completely sever relations (between countries).”

He stated that Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, the head of the Intelligence Service, and other relevant ministers in Turkey will continue to use all the capabilities offered to them by diplomacy.

He stressed that Turkey’s main goal is “establishing lasting peace in the Israeli-Palestinian issue.”

He pointed out that they continue to put forward initiatives in this regard and their determination to do what is necessary to “stop the bloodshed.”

Erdogan said, “Our goal is to reach a lasting and sustainable peace that will relieve our region and our country. We are launching our calls to secure this. We want to bring all parties together in a conference, for example.”

Erdogan concluded by saying, “Countries are capable of ending the ongoing war in Gaza, but the people who will end this war are the consciences of the people.”

On the other hand, Erdogan said that he received a letter of thanks a few days ago “from NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg after he signed the protocol for Sweden’s accession to the alliance and sent it to the Turkish Parliament.”

Recently, the Turkish President signed the protocol on Sweden’s accession to the alliance and it was referred to Parliament.

In mid-July, the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, hosted a tripartite meeting that included President Erdogan, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Hilmar Kristersson, and Stoltenberg.

Following the meeting, a tripartite statement confirmed that Ankara would refer Sweden’s NATO accession protocols to Parliament for ratification and that Stockholm would support efforts to revive Turkey’s accession process to the European Union.​​​​​​

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Fethiye District in Mugla Province, western Turkey, ranked second in a list prepared by the British newspaper The Times of the best tourist places for the month of October.

The Times’s list of “Best places for a beach holiday in October” included ten places from around the world, including one tourist destination in Turkey.

The Times commented on the list by saying: “An ideal opportunity for budget-conscious travelers to take advantage of low prices.”

The list was as follows: Ibiza (Spain), Fethiye (Turkey), Malta, Zanzibar (Tanzania), Goa (India), Cape Town (South Africa), Faro (Portugal), Jamaica, Tulum (Mexico), Crete (Greece).

Thousands of Turkish and foreign tourists visit Fethiye every year to enjoy its picturesque nature, its charming coasts on the Aegean Sea, and its ancient cities, in addition to practicing skydiving from BabaDag Mountain, which reaches a height of 1,965 meters.

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MasterCard, the global leader in the payments sector, announced that spending by foreign tourists who visited Turkey in the first nine months of this year via their bank cards increased by 19 percent compared to the same period in 2022.

This came in a statement by the company on Saturday regarding the issuance of its report for the 2023 tourism season in Turkey for the period from January 1 to September 19.

The report included the latest data regarding spending on cards issued outside the country bearing the “MasterCard” and “Maestro” logos.

The statement pointed out that the number of cards used for payments increased by 25 percent in parallel with the increase in the number of tourists in Turkey.

In detail, 50 percent of foreign tourists’ spending in Turkey was from tourists coming from Britain, Germany, the United States of America, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the Netherlands.

It was noteworthy that British tourists’ spending increased by 34 percent compared to last year, and their spending amounted to 18 percent of the total spending of foreign tourists arriving in Turkey in the nine months.

The highest growth was recorded compared to last year in the spending of tourists coming from Saudi Arabia, at a rate of 298 percent, as the share of tourists coming from this country in the total spending of foreign tourists in Turkey reached 4 percent in the aforementioned period.

The highest spending per card was on Kuwaiti cards, at a rate of $1,280.

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