Erdoğan hosts Palestinian President Abbas, wows accountability for Netanyahu, allies

Turkish President Erdoğan hosted Palestinian President Abbas in Ankara. "Netanyahu and his murder partners will surely pay for every drop of blood they shed before the law and the public conscience,” Erdoğan said in a joint press conference.

Wednesday March 06 2024 12:06 pm

Duvar English

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on March 5 met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the capital Ankara.

Erdoğan and Abbas held a joint press conference after their bilateral meeting lasting approximately 1.5 hours.

"For 151 days, we have been witnessing one of the greatest barbarities of the last century," Erdoğan said.

He once again stated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu committing genocide against the Palestinians and added, “Netanyahu and his murder partners will surely pay for every drop of blood they shed before the law and the public conscience.”

Erdoğan criticized the Israel’s efforts to delegitimize the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and stated, “Israel's propaganda aimed at discrediting the Agency with lies and slander should not be given credit and its existence should not be jeopardized.”

The official stance of the Turkish government advocated for the creation of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state that is geographically contiguous and situated within the borders of 1967, with East Jerusalem designated as its capital. This stance was reiterated by President Erdoğan during the press conference.

“As Turkey, we are ready to assume responsibility within the framework of the guarantor mechanism. We will continue to increase our efforts in this regard,” Erdoğan noted.

Palestinian President Abbas said, "Turkey fulfills its historical responsibility towards the Palestinian people on the basis of brotherhood in the best way possible."

Abbas expressed the desire for Palestine to attain permanent membership status within the United Nations, with the goal of achieving this through a resolution passed by the Security Council.

"An international peace conference needs to be organized and a road map needs to be adopted. In this regard, we attach importance to Turkey's role,” Abbas underscored.

“We do not accept the displacement of the Palestinian people from Gaza and the West Bank. Israel is trying to realize this project by burning and destroying,” Palestinian President stated, in reference to Israel’s endeavours to force Gazans concentrating in Rafah City.

In the Gaza Strip, Israel killed 30,631 Palestinians and wounded 72,043 in the last 150 days.