World
Erdogan minces no words, calls Israel "terror state"
Ankara: Turkish President, Tayyip Erdogan, termed Israel a "terror state" on Saturday after Israeli police fired rubber bullets and stun grenades on protesting Palestinian youth at Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa mosque on Friday.
In his statement, Erdogan warned that Turkey had launched initiatives to mobilise international institutions. He called on all Muslim countries and the international community to take effective steps against Israel, stressing that those who remain silent were "a party to the cruelty there."
Israel unleashed it's fury on protesting Palestinians who were angry at being evicted from their homes to make way for even more Jewish settlements.
Putting the anger of the Muslim world in unflinching words, Erdogan said, "The cruel Israel, terror state Israel is mercilessly and unethically attacking Muslims in Jerusalem,".
Government and opposition figures were united in condemning Israel's actions. Hundreds of people crowded outside Israel's embassy in Ankara and its consulate in Istanbul late on Friday, despite a nationwide COVID-19 lockdown, in protest of the violence in Jerusalem and Al-Aqsa.
The Turkish President asked Israel to halt the evictions, "Otherwise, we will do everything we can to ensure the cruel are sentenced to the fate they deserve."
Turkey has been consistent in condemning Israeli atrocities, and has shot down rumors of a reconciliation with the apartheid state until the Palestinians are given a just settlement.