Israel-Hamas war: Erdogan addresses huge pro-Palestine rally, blames West for massacre in Gaza

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday (Oct 28) that Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip was a product of the West, adding that Israel could not take any steps without its support. Addressing a pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul, President Erdogan called Israel an "occupier and invader." "Our hearts are wrenching for what is happening in Gaza," Erdogan said.

"Gaza was an inseparable part of our homeland in the past," he also said, adding that Turkey would never allow another Gaza catastrophe.

'Israel is a war criminal'

The Turkish president further sharpened his attack on the West by saying that Western countries were trying to legitimise the murders of women and children. Erdogan also called Israel a war criminal.

"We will introduce Israel as a war criminal. But Western leaders are not responding- not even calling for a ceasefire. I want to ask how many women, how many children are to die further," he said at the rally.

Erdogan called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a terrorist and that Hamas was not a terrorist outfit.

Turkey has condemned Israeli civilian deaths caused by Hamas's October 7 rampage through southern Israel, but Erdogan this week called the militant group Palestinian "freedom fighters".

He also criticised some Western nations' unconditional support for Jerusalem, drawing sharp rebukes from Italy and Israel.

"All the Western countries are giving unconditional support to the attacks rather than calling Israel to return to common sense as if they have agreed to say the same thing," Erdogan said during a speech at the presidential palace on Thursday.

"I am asking from here. For the European Commission to be able to call for a ceasefire - let them give the number - how many more children need to die? For the United Nations Security Council to take action, how many more tonnes of bombs need to fall on Gaza? For Western institutions to say 'stop' to the massacre, how many more women, civilians and elderly need to lose their lives?" he added.

UN warns of 'possibly catastrophic consequences'

Volker Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on Saturday warned of "possibly catastrophic consequences" of large-scale ground operations in Gaza.

"Given the manner in which military operations have been conducted until now, in the context of the 56-year-old occupation, I am raising alarm about the possibly catastrophic consequences of large-scale ground operations in Gaza and the potential for thousands more civilians to die," Turk said in a statement, adding continued violence was not the answer.

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