Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has slammed Germany over what he said was its ignorance of Israel’s “genocide”, famine and attacks in Gaza.
Speaking at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Ankara, Erdogan spoke of Israeli violations of the ceasefire in recent days. “Does Germany not see these?” he said, adding it was Turkiye, Germany and other countries’ humanitarian duty to end the famine and massacres in Gaza.
Merz said that his government had stood by Israel since the October 7, 2023 attack by Hamas and that he believes Israel was exercising its right to self-defence.
“It would have taken only one decision to avoid countless unnecessary casualties. Hamas should have released the hostages earlier and laid down its arms.”
Friedrich Merz
He added that he hoped the war was coming to an end with the US-brokered and Turkey-backed ceasefire deal.
Merz has criticised Israeli actions in Gaza and this year Germany suspended military exports there, citing the deteriorating humanitarian situation.
He has stopped short of backing accusations of genocide, however, arguing that criticism of Israel must not become a pretext for antisemitism.
Erdogan asserted that he could not agree with remarks by the German Chancellor supporting Israel, adding that Israel’s attacks have killed nearly 60,000 people, including children, women, and the elderly.
The Turkish President emphasized that the Palestinian group Hamas “has neither bombs nor nuclear weapons, but Israel does,” adding that Israel used them to strike Gaza yesterday.
Erdogan said that he conveyed Ankara’s views to Merz on preventing renewed atrocities in Gaza and stressed support for a two-state solution as a path to lasting peace.
“Just as we want the Russia-Ukraine war to end, we also support an end to Israel’s war on Gaza. Türkiye and Germany are two key countries that can join hands to achieve this.”
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
He stressed that Türkiye has consistently taken the necessary steps regarding the Palestinian group Hamas. “My Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, and intelligence teams are working continuously to prevent any problems,” he said.
“We are ready to cooperate closely. My ministers have received instructions and are actively engaging with the relevant parties and will continue to do so.”
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Erdogan further condemned Israel’s ongoing assaults on Gaza, saying it has “always sought to subdue (the territory) through starvation and what amounts to genocide, and this continues to this day.”
Israel has killed more than 68,500 people, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,600 others in attacks in Gaza since October 2023.
Türkiye’s Red Crescent Unable To Deliver Food To Gaza
Moreover, Erdogan said that Türkiye’s Red Crescent has been unable to deliver food aid to Gaza, and that the Red Cross there also remains under constant threat.
“So far, we have sent over 100,000 tons of food aid, but it is not enough. Continued aid deliveries are essential.”
“We need to end the genocide and the deliberate starvation (in Gaza) by involving Germany’s Red Cross and our own Turkish Red Crescent.”
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Despite a fragile US-brokered ceasefire that took effect on October 10, Israel launched a series of bombardments on Gaza following the killing of an Israeli soldier in southern Gaza’s Rafah on Tuesday. Israel’s retaliatory attacks killed 104 people, mostly women and children, said Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Erdogan also pointed to the potential for NATO allies to focus on joint projects in the defence industry, and reiterated Ankara’s wish to join the European Union.
Merz said that he saw Türkiye as a close partner to the EU, that he wanted to develop bilateral economic relations, including in the transport sector and migration.
Erdogan hosted a dinner for Merz at the Presidential Complex after the press conference.
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