Ankara — President Erdoğan condemned Israeli actions in Gaza, vowing Türkiye will stand firm against oppression and support the Palestinian people. In a speech in Ankara on Sept. 17, Erdoğan declared that Türkiye would continue to pursue an independent foreign policy and resist instability in the region.
Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Foreign Ministry headquarters, he said Türkiye is “no longer a country of empty rhetoric and cheap polemics” but one capable of setting its own agenda.
“The language of diplomacy is courtesy, and Türkiye’s foreign policy is peace-oriented. But this does not mean we will remain silent in the face of insolence,” Erdoğan said. “We will stand firm against those who seek to turn our region into a sea of blood.”
Reserving his strongest remarks for Israel, Erdoğan denounced its attacks on Gaza and neighboring states. “We will not bow to oppression. No one can prevent us from standing with the oppressed people of Gaza,” he declared, reinforcing his Gaza condemnation message.
The president criticized the killing of civilians: “It is futile to believe that a secure future can be built at the cost of innocent children’s lives through genocide. They will drown in the blood they have shed. There is no escape from this.”
Directly addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Erdoğan said: “Perhaps he will understand when I shout it from here today.”
He also warned against undermining Muslim claims to Jerusalem: “We will not allow the holy city of Jerusalem to be defiled by unholy hands. Muslims will not take a single step back from our rights over East Jerusalem.”
