Turkish President Recep Tayip Erdogan said on Wednesday that there was “no difference” between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Adolf Hitler.
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“How are you different from Hitler?” Mr. Erdogan told the Israeli leader during a ceremony in Ankara.
The Israeli prime minister reacted quickly.
“Erdogan, who is committing genocide against the Kurds and holds the world record for imprisoning journalists who oppose his regime, is the last person who can preach morality to us,” he replied in a statement.
AFP
Mr. Netanyahu accused Mr. Erdogan of welcoming Hamas leaders and defended the Israeli military operation in Gaza.
The Israeli military is “fighting to eliminate the most heinous and brutal terrorist organization in the world,” he said, referring to Hamas. He added that the Palestinian movement had “committed crimes against humanity.”
Since the beginning of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the Turkish leader, a traditional ally of the Palestinian cause, has increased his invective against Israel and also denounced the United States' support for the Israeli government.
Mr. Erdogan particularly described Israel as a “terrorist” and “genocidal” state due to the intense bombings of the Palestinian territory in the Gaza Strip carried out by the Israeli army in retaliation for the massacre of some 1,140 people, mostly civilians, by the Hamas movement on January 7. October.
Those military operations in Gaza killed 21,110 people, most of them civilians, and injured 55,243, according to a new report from the Hamas Ministry of Health on Wednesday.
AFP