Erdogan Canvasses Turkey, Iran To Take A ‘United Stand’ Against Israel’s Massacre In Gaza

Erdogan Canvasses Turkey, Iran To Take A ‘United Stand’ Against Israel’s Massacre in Gaza

By Mustafa Ahmad

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi that he wanted Turkey and Iran to take a “united stand” against Israel’s “brutality” against Palestinians.
The two leaders spoke by the phone and the call “addressed Israel’s unlawful attacks on Gaza, humanitarian aid efforts for the Palestinians, and steps that can be taken to reach a permanent ceasefire in the region,” according to the Turkish Directorate of Communication.

“During the call, President Erdoğan voiced the significance of the Islamic world, particularly Turkey and Iran, taking a united stand against Israel’s brutality in the Palestinian lands,” the statement said.
Erdogan “stated that Iran and Turkey would maintain cooperation in order to render the temporary ceasefire permanent and achieve permanent peace.”

Raisi said during the phone call: “The US has no right to interfere and make any decisions for the people of Gaza, and any action they take in this regard is doomed to failure,” according to state news agency IRNA.

He added: “The people of Gaza, through Hamas, as a legitimate, legal government arising from public votes must decide for the future of Gaza, and the Americans have no right to interfere and make decisions for the people of Gaza, and any action they take in this regard is doomed to failure.”

Since the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas on October 7, Erdogan has taken a firm stance against Israel. He described Israel as a “terror state”.

Erdogan said mid-November that Turkey will take steps to ensure that political and military leaders who “ruthlessly” massacred people in Gaza face trial in the international courts, according to state news agency Anadolu. “If Israel continues its massacres, it will be seen everywhere in the world as a ‘universally condemned terrorist state’.”

Meanwhile, Tehran has focused more on the role of the US in supporting Israel. Raisi said earlier in November: “The war machine in Gaza is in the hands of America, which is preventing a ceasefire in Gaza and expanding the war. The world must see the true face of America.”

Raisi also warned of the possibility of the conflict between Israel and Hamas to expand to other fronts – referring to the “axis of resistance” a term which Iran uses to refer to an alliance of non-state actors in the Middle East that oppose Western influence, namely the US and Israel. This axis includes Iran, Syria, Hezbollah militia in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine.