Turkey's Erdogan on Wednesday (December 27) compared Israel's attack on Gaza to the Nazi treatment of Jews, arguing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is no different from Hitler.
Turkey, a NATO member that supports the two-state solution, has criticized Israel's air and ground attacks on Gaza, calling it a "terrorist state" and saying its leaders must stand trial before an international tribunal.
Erdogan said Turkey welcomes academics and scientists who have been criticized for expressing their views on the Israeli-Kazakhstan conflict, adding that Western countries that support Israel are complicit in what he calls war crimes.
They used to speak ill of Hitler. What is the difference between you and Hitler?They will make us nostalgic for Hitler. Did this Netanyahu do less than Hitler?This is not the case. ”
He was richer than Hitler, he had the support of the West, all kinds of support from the United States. What have they done with this support?They killed more than 20,000 Gazans. ”
Netanyahu responded that Erdogan had no right to preach to Israel.
"Erdogan has committed genocide against the Kurds, and he has also imprisoned a record number of opposition journalists, and he has no right to preach morality to us," Netanyahu said in a statement. ”
Despite the criticism, Turkey maintains commercial relations with Israel, causing a backlash from opposition parties and Iran. Ankara noted that since October 7, there has been a sharp decline in ** with Israel.
Unlike Western allies and some Arab countries, Turkey does not consider Hamas a terrorist organization.