Erdogan blames international community for Gaza massacre, warns of UN ‘death’

He accuses the organization of “not being functional” and asks that international justice not be left “at the mercy of five States” with the right of veto

He says Israel is looking for “excuses” to avoid a ceasefire agreement and calls for the introduction of “coercive measures”

September 24 () –

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday blamed the international community for the massacre that has led to the death of more than 41,400 people in bombings carried out by the Israeli Army in the Gaza Strip, where he warned that the United Nations system could “die” if appropriate measures are not taken to prevent genocide.

“The only reason Israel’s aggression against the Palestinian people continues is because it is unconditionally supported by a group of countries. Those who have influence over Israel are complicit in the massacre. Those who are supposedly working for a ceasefire continue to send weapons and ammunition to Israel to continue the massacre while acting behind the scenes,” Erdogan warned, calling this stance “incoherent” and “lacking sincerity.”

During his speech to the United Nations General Assembly, the Turkish president lamented that “in Gaza, not only children are dying, but also the UN system.” He regretted that “the values ​​that the West claims to defend are dead,” as well as the truth, which “is also dying.”

“I ask the human rights organisations in all frankness and openly whether those in Gaza and the West Bank are not human, whether they have no rights, whether these children have no right to play in their homeland,” he said, before calling on the Security Council to act to “prevent genocide and stop cruelty.”

“What are they waiting for to arrest (Benjamin) Netanyahu and his (criminal) network?” he said before accusing Israeli forces of perpetrating “mass murders.” “Aren’t countries that support Israel ashamed?” he continued before stating that “what is happening in Palestine is a sign of a moral collapse,” something that everyone “must reflect on.”

Erdogan has accused the Israeli government of violating international law and “practicing ethnic cleansing” as well as “occupying Palestinian territory.” He has therefore praised the “just resistance of a people against those who occupy their land,” which he has described as “noble and legitimate.” “They are heroes,” he said.

The Turkish president stressed the presence of the Palestinian representative in the chamber “after a long struggle” and called for Palestine’s “membership” within the UN. “We all have to fulfil our obligation to the Palestinian people without further delay,” he added.

“The United Nations was created after the Second World War, in which millions of people perished, to maintain international peace and stability. With its creation, expectations for global peace re-emerged and hopes were rekindled,” he said, not without first lamenting that in recent years the UN “has not fulfilled its founding mission and has become a dysfunctional structure.”

In this regard, he stressed the importance of the fact that international justice “cannot be left at the mercy of five privileged member states of the Security Council”, a clear allusion to the role of the United States, Russia, China, France and the United Kingdom. “The United Nations Charter has been destroyed from this very platform,” he said.

“We have seen images of prisons in Israel that have been turned into concentration camps, which shows the barbarity. Gaza has become the world’s largest cemetery for children and women, and despite everything, we have not been able to save these children,” he said.

CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL

Regarding the US proposal for a ceasefire in the Palestinian enclave, Erdogan said that “Hamas has repeatedly declared that it accepts the proposal, while Israel has shown that it is the party that does not want peace.”

“(Israel) has been making excuses and has killed the negotiating partner (Ismail Haniyeh) at the moment when they were closest to reaching a ceasefire agreement. We cannot accept this blockade by Israel any longer. In the absence of the implementation of Security Council resolution 2735, coercive measures should be taken against Israel,” he continued.

“The behaviour of this country once again demonstrates that it is essential for the international community to develop a protection mechanism for Palestinian civilians. Seventy years ago, just as Hitler was stopped by an alliance of humanity, Netanyahu and his murderous network will have to be stopped by an alliance of humanity,” he said.

On the other hand, Erdogan has shown his solidarity with the Lebanese people, who have suffered a wave of bombings by Israel in recent days, and has stressed that Israel “must be held accountable.” “We support South Africa’s cause before the ICJ to ensure that Israel’s crimes do not go unpunished. We will take all necessary measures to ensure that justice is done,” he explained, not without first stressing that Turkey “will resort to all possible legal options,” also to ensure that justice is done for the death at the hands of Israel of the Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi.

“I am not going to speak in political jargon. What encourages me are our ancestors, who have always been on the side of the victors. We are a nation that has been on the side of the oppressed and has fought against tyranny. (…) We have no hostility or animosity towards the people of Israel; we are against anti-Semitism,” he said.

“Our problem lies in Israel’s policies of massacre, in oppression. (…) We are going to speak out about what we believe is right even if it hurts some people,” he said before thanking “all the brave people who have supported the Palestinian people.”