Turkey Cuts Ties With Israel

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

ANKARA/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Wednesday that Turkey has cut its ties with the State of Israel, marking a sharp escalation in diplomatic tensions between the two nations.

“We have cut trade and ties with Israel, period,” Erdoğan said in remarks to Turkish media.

However, Israeli officials in Jerusalem said they were unaware of the diplomatic status change.

While Turkey recalled its ambassador from Israel “in protest of the Gaza War,” the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv is still operating, Israeli sources said.

Erdoğan spoke to reporters aboard his plane following recent visits to Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.

The Turkey’s leader stressed his condemnation of what he called “genocide” by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon.

ISRAEL DENIES

Israel’s government has vehemently denied committing atrocities, saying it is fighting Iran’s proxies, such as Hamas, after the group killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel on October 7 last year.

However, Erdoğan said there was “an urgent need” for humanitarian aid and an immediate ceasefire. “As you know, intense efforts are being made to keep the pressure on Israel alive and to take coercive measures against this country based on international law,” he added.

The Turkish president has been among Israel’s harshest critics before and after last year’s Hamas massacre, described as “the worst atrocity against Jews since the Holocaust,” or Shoah.

He refused to condemn the Hamas atrocities against Israeli civilians and instead lashed out at Israel for its war against Hamas in Gaza.

In March, Erdoğan emphasized Turkey’s strong ties with Hamas, which he refuses to recognize as a “terrorist organization.”

“Turkey is a country that speaks openly with Hamas leaders and firmly backs them. No one can make us qualify Hamas as a terrorist organization,” he said

HITLER COMPARISON

The Turkish president has also compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler who ordered the murder of six million Jews.

“Netanyahu and his administration, with their crimes against humanity in Gaza, are writing their names next to Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin, like today’s Nazis,” Erdoğan claimed.

In May, the Turkish leader escalated his rhetoric by calling Netanyahu a “vampire” and said the State of Israel was a threat to “all of humanity.”

He also announced that Turkey would halt all commercial trade with the Jewish state. Former Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz strongly condemned Erdoğan, accusing him of undermining both Israeli and Turkish traders.

“Erdoğan crossed a line and blocked ports for Israeli exports and imports,” Katz complained.

“This is how a dictator behaves – trampling on the interests of the Turkish people and businessmen and ignoring international trade agreements,” he argued.

Copyright 1999-2024 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.

Latest Stories from Worthy News

Mexico: New Law Makes Christians Increasingly Vulnerable to Persecution
Mexico: New Law Makes Christians Increasingly Vulnerable to Persecution
Thursday, November 14, 2024

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent (Worthy News) – A new law intended to protect Indigenous Mexican communities may force Christians in Mexico to participate in traditional pagan practices on pain of legal repercussions, Christian Today (CT) reports. The Open Doors international Christian advocacy organization has warned legislation passed in September may see Mexican Christians having to participate in such rituals as animal sacrifice if they want to avoid punishment by the government. Considered obligatory, such rituals are followed by Indigenous groups who practice a combination of Catholic tradition with pre-Hispanic beliefs. Even before the new law was passed to … Read more

Egypt: Terrorism Circuit Court Considers Death Penalty for Two Men Who Bombed Protestant Church
Egypt: Terrorism Circuit Court Considers Death Penalty for Two Men Who Bombed Protestant Church
Thursday, November 14, 2024

Amid efforts by Egypt’s Islamic government to improve its relations with Egyptian Christians, the Cairo Criminal Court’s terrorism circuit has referred the case of two men convicted of a church bombing to the Grand Mufti for his opinion on whether the death penalty should be applied, Watani International (WI) reports.

Taiwan Considering $15 Billion Weapons Deal with US: Report
Taiwan Considering $15 Billion Weapons Deal with US: Report
Thursday, November 14, 2024

Taiwan has told the incoming Trump administration it is interested in securing a massive $15 billion military weapons deal with the United States, the Financial Times reported exclusively on Tuesday (November 12).

Trump taps Matt Gaetz as Attorney General, Tulsi Gabbard as Intelligence Official
Trump taps Matt Gaetz as Attorney General, Tulsi Gabbard as Intelligence Official
Wednesday, November 13, 2024

President-Elect Donald Trump named two more high-profile figures to his administration Wednesday afternoon, the latest in a flurry of presidential picks.

Turkey Cuts Ties With Israel
Turkey Cuts Ties With Israel
Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Wednesday that Turkey has cut its ties with the State of Israel, marking a sharp escalation in diplomatic tensions between the two nations.