Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused Israel of carrying out genocide—not war—in blockaded Gaza. In an emotional address to the United Nations General Assembly, he urged the international community to take urgent action.
Erdoğan said genocide has been unfolding in Gaza for more than 700 days. Over the past 23 months, Israel has killed one child every hour. “These are not just numbers; each represents a life, an innocent human being,” he remarked.
He further stated that modern history has never witnessed such a humanitarian catastrophe. Children as young as two or three are being amputated without anesthesia. “There is no war in Gaza; there are no two sides,” Erdoğan declared. “This is unilateral aggression, genocide, a policy of mass killing.”
Thanking countries that have recognized the State of Palestine, Erdoğan urged others to act swiftly. Expressing regret over Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s absence in New York, he said Turkey is speaking on behalf of the Palestinian people, whose voices have been silenced.
The Turkish President demanded an immediate ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian aid, and accountability for what he called Israel’s “genocidal machinery.” He alleged that Israel’s aggression is not confined to Gaza or the occupied West Bank but has spread to Syria, Iran, Yemen, Lebanon, and Qatar, posing a grave threat to regional stability.
Calling on world leaders, Erdoğan said humanity must stand firmly with the oppressed Palestinians. He argued that Israeli attacks have erased fundamental human rights—including women’s rights, children’s rights, freedom of expression, equality, and justice.
He asked, “Can there be peace in a world where children die from hunger and lack of medicine? Humanity has not witnessed such brutality in the past century.