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Edited by: Fern Sidman
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of Turkey, has been a polarizing figure on the international stage, drawing attention for his controversial statements against Israel and human rights abuses within his own country. It is noteworthy to provide a detailed chronological overview of Erdogan’s anti-Israel rhetoric, his role in actions against the Kurdish people, and his administration’s crackdown on journalists critical of his regime.
In a recent escalation of rhetoric, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler, drawing parallels between Israel’s actions in Gaza and the atrocities committed by the Nazis against the Jewish people, as was reported by Reuters. Erdogan’s comments reflect Turkey’s longstanding criticism of Israel’s policies, particularly its air and ground assault on Gaza, which Ankara has labeled as acts of a “terror state.”
Netanyahu Accuses Erdogan of Genocide After Turkish Leader Compares Him to Hitler / https://t.co/3ot5FGKnVZ @netanyahu @RTErdogan #Hitler #genocide #IsraelAtWar #Gaza #HamasislSIS @Kurdistan @gantzbe #journalists @GPOIsrael @IDF @antisemitism
Follow the TJV Breaking NEWS #101…— The Jewish Voice (@JewishVoice) December 27, 2023
The Turkish president went further, asserting that Israel’s leaders must be tried in international courts for what he deemed “war crimes,” as was reported by Reuters. Erdogan, a proponent of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, condemned Israel’s assault on Gaza as an act of terror.
Erdogan extended an invitation to academics and scientists facing persecution for their views on the Gaza conflict, signaling Turkey’s stance in providing refuge for those critical of Israel’s actions, the report added.
‘Erdogan probably feels the mood in the Arab world became so hostile to Israel, that he can employ these terms to become the defendant of the rights of the Muslim world,’
Dr. Alon Liel discusses Erdogan’s criticism of Israel, saying Netanyahu is no different than Hitler – Yimakh… pic.twitter.com/pAwH3Ap8wA— The Jewish Voice (@JewishVoice) December 27, 2023
Netanyahu swiftly rejected Erdogan’s comparison, stating that the Turkish president should be the last person to lecture Israel on morality. Reuters reported that Netanyahu accused Erdogan of committing genocide against the Kurds and holding a world record for imprisoning journalists critical of his rule.The Israeli Prime Minister’s remarks indicate a deepening rift between the two leaders.
Despite Turkey’s vocal criticism of Israel, commercial ties between the two countries persist. This has drawn backlash from opposition parties within Turkey and neighboring Iran. Published reports indicate that Ankara claims that trade with Israel has declined since October 7, following a cross-border attack by the Iranian-backed terror group, Hamas.
Notably, Turkey does not classify Hamas, which currently governs Gaza, as a terrorist organization, differing from the stance held by Western allies and some Arab nations, as was noted in the Reuters report. This distinction contributes to Turkey’s unique position in the regional diplomatic landscape.
Erdogan’s bold statements, likening Israel’s actions to those of Hitler, have added fuel to an already contentious relationship between Turkey and Israel. Netanyahu’s forceful response, citing Erdogan’s domestic policies, underscores the deeply rooted disagreements between the two leaders. As diplomatic tensions persist, the international community closely watches how these dynamics may impact broader regional dynamics and alliances in the Middle East.
Five days after the Hamas attack on Israel, Erdogan delivered an address to the Turkish parliament and condemned Israel’s response to the recent escalation of violence in Gaza as a “massacre” and urged the world not to take sides blindly, as was reported by Reuters. He expressed deep concern over the alleged “disproportionate” use of force by Israel, arguing that such actions lacked an ethical foundation.
“Preventing people meeting their most fundamental needs and bombing housing where civilians live – in short, conducting a conflict using every sort of shameful method – is not a war, it’s a massacre,” he said on October 12th, referring to Israel cutting off electricity and water to Gaza and destroying infrastructure.
Erdogan’s called Israeli air strikes into Gaza a violation of the “morality” of warfare, emphasizing that it amounted to a massacre.
Where is the @un when #Turkey executed women prisoners? @RTErdogan #TurkishBombTerror https://t.co/nbrS644OsU
— The Jewish Voice (@JewishVoice) December 26, 2023
“We call on countries in the Americas, Europe and other regions to take up a position between the parties that is fair, just, and based on humanitarian balances,” Erdogan said in October, as indicated in the Reuters report. “Everyone should refrain from acts that will wholly punish the Palestinian people, like blocking humanitarian aid.”
Turkey has a history of supporting the Palestinian cause, hosting members of Hamas and advocating for a two-state solution. The Turkish government believes that the root of the ongoing conflict lies in years of injustice against Palestinians and insists that the path to peace lies in the creation of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state.
In addition to his October address, Erdogan held a conversation with Jordan’s King Abdullah to discuss regional developments, highlighting the need for vigilance against the potential spread of conflicts in the broader region.
Simultaneously, members of HUDAPAR, an Islamist political party aligned with Erdogan’s AK Party, met with senior Hamas official Bassem Naim and held a news conference alongside him in the Turkish parliament. Reuters reported that they emphasized the need to condemn what they perceived as “Zionist savagery” and called for active support for a rally in Istanbul, referred to as the “Friday Flood,” in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
Erdogan has a long history of displaying contempt and disdain towards Israel.
As was reported by the Anti-Defamation League in 2018, as world attention focused on the demonstrations taking place along the Gaza border, Erdogan fanned the flames of incitement against Israel and Jews with remarks comparing Israel to Nazi Germany. It was just another in a long line of his vocal criticism of Israel, using incendiary language and anti-Semitic statements to attack Israel and mobilize Turkish and Muslim action against the Jewish State.
Just days after the May 14, 2018 Gaza clashes following the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem, where as many as 60 Palestinian protestors were killed (the majority of which were identified as members of Hamas), Erdogan addressed a summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation where he compared Israel to Nazi Germany, saying that “there is no difference between the atrocity faced by the Jewish people in Europe 75 years ago and the brutality that our Gaza brothers are subjected to.”
He repeated this Nazi comparison later in his speech, saying that the leadership of a people “who were subjected to all kinds of torture in the concentration camps during World War II is attacking the Palestinians with methods similar to the Nazis”, adding that “I will say openly and clearly that what Israel is doing is banditry, brutality and state terror.”
That same day he addressed a crowd of tens of thousands of people who he had mobilized to demonstrate against Israel in Istanbul. He once again referenced the Holocaust, saying that “We believe a people who were victims of the Holocaust will not give consent to the crime against humanity committed by their own state”.
#Turkey @RTErdogan #terrorist https://t.co/MNCrloeEcY
— The Jewish Voice (@JewishVoice) December 26, 2023
He followed his statements with concrete measures by recalling Turkish ambassadors from both Israel and the US for consultation and vowed to reevaluate economic ties with Israel and urged Muslim countries to impose sanctions against countries which follow the US by moving their embassies to Jerusalem.
Erdogan also has a long history of anti-Semitic language when it comes to Israel. Months earlier in 2018, after former President Trump’s initial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital on December 6th, Erdogan had alleged that this recognition was a result of the US president’s “Zionist mentality.”
During the military confrontation between Israel and Hamas in the summer of 2014, also known as Operation Protective Edge, Erdogan said that “Just like Hitler, who sought to establish a race free of all faults, Israel is chasing after the same target.” He went on to say that “they kill women so that they will not give birth to Palestinians; they kill babies so that they won’t grow up; they kill men so they can’t defend their country … They will drown in the blood they shed.”
A few weeks earlier, in July 2014, Erdogan made similar Nazi comparisons when he stated that “Israelis have no conscience, no honor, no pride. Those who condemn Hitler day and night have surpassed Hitler in barbarism.”
In 2009, Erdogan gained international attention during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he walked out of a panel discussion, accusing Israel of committing “barbarian acts” in Gaza.
In 2010, Israel and Turkey formally broke diplomatic ties when Erdogan personally greenlit a flotilla of ships to breach the Israeli blockade of Gaza. Israeli commandos intercepted and boarded the largest vessel, known as the Mavi Marmara, to ensure that the crew carried no weapons or cash for the terrorist group Hamas. However, when crew members attacked them, the Israelis were forced to defend themselves, ultimately killing nine of the assailants. Most of the flotilla’s passengers were Islamists sympathetic to Hamas, which seeks Israel’s destruction.
Turkish terrorism is out of control @RTErdogan #StopTurkishTerorism #StopTurkishAtrocities https://t.co/I7Kn122FwS
— The Jewish Voice (@JewishVoice) December 26, 2023
In February 2013, then-Prime Minister Erdogan compared Zionism to anti-Semitism and regarded both as crimes against humanity. Addressing a UN conference in Vienna, Erdogan said that “Just like Zionism, anti-Semitism and fascism, it becomes unavoidable that Islamophobia must be regarded as a crime against humanity.”
These statements reflect not only Erdogan’s ongoing efforts to claim moral leadership in the Muslim world, but were also made with an eye to domestic politics.
In May 2021, Al Jazeera reported that Erdogan told Russian President Vladimir Putin that the international community should “give Israel a strong and deterrent lesson” over its “conduct” towards the Palestinians.
Erdogan made the comment during a phone call with Putin, Turkey’s Presidential Communications Directorate said, amid escalating violence that took place at the time in East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip.
In 2016, the Times of Israel reported that Erdogan had insisted that Israeli commandos were guilty in the Mavi Marmara flotilla that attempted to enter Gaza, dismissing video evidence and investigations that show the soldiers were attacked before opening fire.
In an interview with Israel’s Channel 2 in 2016, Erdogan said “it is impossible to believe” that the Israeli soldiers who boarded the Mavi Marmara tried to avert bloodshed, according to the TOI report.
“We have all of the documents and evidence,” Erdogan said, and “it’s impossible” that the soldiers were acting in self-defense, the TOI reported in 2016.
Erdogan dismissed footage of the incident that showed the Turkish activists assaulting the soldiers with metal rods and clubs, as well as a severely injured commando held in the belly of the ship.
“We have all of the evidence,” he told journalist Ilana Dayan of Channel 2’s Uvda program in an interview, the TOI report said. “Speak correctly. The fact that you’re a journalist shouldn’t prevent you from speaking correctly.”
Kurdish Suppression
2015: Resumption of Conflict
In 2015, Erdogan’s government renewed its conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), ending a fragile ceasefire. The military crackdown disproportionately targeted Kurdish communities, leading to significant civilian casualties.
2016: Purge and Emergency Rule
Following a failed coup attempt in 2016, Erdogan declared a state of emergency, initiating a massive purge of perceived political opponents. Kurdish activists, academics, and journalists were among those targeted, facing imprisonment on charges of terrorism.
2019: Offensive in Northern Syria
In October 2019, Turkey launched Operation Peace Spring, a military offensive in northern Syria against Kurdish forces, specifically the People’s Protection Units (YPG). The operation drew international condemnation for its impact on civilians and the Kurdish population.
Media Repression
2016: Crackdown on Journalists
In the aftermath of the failed coup, Erdogan intensified his crackdown on the media. Numerous journalists critical of the government were arrested, and media outlets were shut down, stifling dissent and freedom of the press.
2018: Sentencing of Journalists
Prominent journalists, such as Ahmet Altan and Nazli Ilicak, were sentenced to life in prison in 2018 on charges of aiding terrorism. These cases exemplified the erosion of press freedom under Erdogan’s administration.
2020: New Legislation
Erdogan’s government introduced legislation in 2020 that granted authorities sweeping powers to control social media platforms. Critics argued that this move aimed to further suppress independent journalism and limit freedom of expression.
Erdogan’s anti-Israel statements have strained diplomatic relations, while his role in suppressing the Kurdish population and restricting media freedoms has sparked widespread criticism. As the international community closely monitors Turkey’s trajectory, Erdogan’s legacy remains a subject of intense debate, raising concerns about human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in the country.