Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took a direct shot at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, declaring that war criminals have no place at the UN podium and should instead be standing trial in a courtroom. The remarks came during the closing ceremony of the 29th International Business Forum in Istanbul, according to the Anadolu news agency.
Erdogan did not mention Netanyahu by name, but the timing left little ambiguity. Netanyahu had just addressed the UN General Assembly in New York, and Erdogan's comments were widely read as a pointed response. He said that if those who commit genocide are not held accountable before justice and history, the same atrocities will simply repeat themselves.
The Turkish president also addressed the situation in Gaza directly, saying the Palestinian people are neither alone nor abandoned. He added that the broader region, with Turkey at its center, is living through what he called a full storm of crises.
Erdogan has been one of the most vocal critics of Israel's military campaign in Gaza, repeatedly comparing Israeli operations to genocide and calling for international accountability. His remarks at the Istanbul forum continue a pattern of using high-profile domestic events to amplify his position on the conflict on the world stage.
The exchange underscores the deepening rift between Turkey and Israel, two countries that once maintained close military and economic ties but have seen relations collapse almost entirely since the start of the Gaza war.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took a direct shot at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, declar...
Written on 09/28/2026