'Hamas is a resistance organisation'- Erdogan's remark on the sidelines of UNGA

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he does not consider Hamas a terrorist organisation, during an interview with the American news channel Fox News, on the sidelines of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly. He called Hamas a ‘resistance organisation’.

When asked if he considers the massacre in the Gaza Strip a genocide, Erdogan replied, "There is no other way to explain this. This is a complete genocide. The perpetrator of this genocide is Netanyahu."

"Netanyahu has brutally massacred tens of thousands in this genocide. As Türkiye, we are completely against this genocide," said Erdogan.

When Bret Baier asked if he thinks Hamas should release the hostages, he said it would be unjust to completely blame Hamas, after what Israel and Netanyahu have historically done to Palestine. He said that nearly 125,000 are wounded in Gaza, a significant number of whom were brought to Turkey.

He said, "Can we say this: ‘Is Hamas stronger than Israel in terms of weapons?’ It is not possible. Israel is mercilessly using these weapons against everyone, from young to old, including women, children, and the elderly."

Erdogan had reportedly shown several pictures of the Gaza massacre in his speech to the UN General Assembly. Reacting to the Humanitarian crisis in Gaza, President Erdogan said, "If you recall, Mr Trump made a statement. He said, 'I will end the Russia-Ukraine war.' Did it end? It's still going on. In the same way, he said, 'I will end the Gaza war.' Has it ended? No." When asked about Hamas, Erdogan added, "I see them as a resistance organisation."

Erdogan has long supported Hamas. Following the October 7 attack, he said, Hamas is a "liberation group, 'mujahideen' waging a battle to protect its lands and people". Earlier in May 2024, during a joint press conference with the Greek Prime Minister, Erdogan defended Hamas, saying that branding Hamas as a terrorist organisation would be a mistake. Turkey have never officially designated Hamas as a terrorist organisation, unlike many European nations.

Many Human Rights groups have reiterated that it would be problematic to call Hamas a Resistance group. Israel is historically a colonial power armed by the neo-colonial United States, has taken up indigenous Arab lands. While International law recognises the occupied people's right to resist, Hamas's existence has weakened the Political power of the Palestinian Authority. Thus, a reduced political representation has also eroded international legitimacy for the Palestinian cause. There had been numerous pieces of evidence which show Israel has allowed and aided Hamas to grow to delegitimise the PLO, led by Yasser Arafat, which was its main enemy. Netanyahu never wanted a two-state solution; he wanted to keep Hamas in power to say that there was no leadership for a Palestinian state.