President Erdoğan spoke at the Extraordinary Joint Summit Meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League

 

Addressing the Extraordinary Joint Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, President Erdoğan said: “We, as Islamic countries, must lead the steps that can be taken against Israel. It is of utmost importance that an arms embargo must be imposed on Israel, trade with Israel must be halted, and Israel must be isolated in the international arena so long as it continues its aggression.”

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke at the Extraordinary Joint Summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

“50 THOUSAND PALESTINIANS HAVE BEEN MARTYRED SO FAR IN ISRAEL'S MASSACRES IN GAZA”

“50,000 Palestinians have been martyred so far in Israel's massacres in Gaza and other Palestinian territories, with 70% of them being children and women,” underlined President Erdoğan, wishing Allah’s mercy on the deceased and a speedy recovery to the wounded.

President Erdoğan said: “The Netanyahu government, while escalating the military tension with Iran, is concurrently carrying on with its attacks against Lebanon. Israel cannot even tolerate humanitarian aid reaching Gaza, keeping the dispatched relief supplies on hold in Egypt for months. We must, on one hand, focus on ensuring an immediate declaration of ceasefire, and on the other hand, urgently find ways to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. Türkiye has so far sent over 84 thousand tons of aid to Gaza and stands ready to dispatch much more once restrictions are lifted,”

“WE CANNOT ALLOW OUR DIFFERENCES OF OPINION TO IMPEDE US IN OUR COMMON CAUSES”

“The Israeli parliament, by banning the United Nations Relief and Works Agency UNRWA in recent days, seeks to thwart a two-state solution and prevent Palestinian refugees from returning to their homeland,” warned President Erdoğan. “Israel’s goal is to settle in Gaza and wipe out the Palestinian existence in the West Bank, including East al-Quds, ultimately annexing it. There is a step-by-step progress in this direction. We must stop this.”

President Erdoğan stated: “The situation on the ground has unfortunately reached this point since a handful of western countries have provided every sort of military, political, economic and moral support to Israel while Muslim countries have failed in giving an adequate response. It is of extraordinary importance that we maintain our initiatives in coordination and on the basis of international law and the United Nations Charter, particularly in order to implement coercive measures against those perpetrating the crime of genocide in Gaza. We cannot allow our differences of opinion or our divergences of approach to impede us in our common causes. We also wholeheartedly wish that our Palestinian brothers and sisters will reach a national unity among themselves, and we encourage them to do so. My dear brothers and sisters, we, as Islamic countries, must lead the steps that can be taken against Israel. First of all, it is of utmost importance that an arms embargo must be imposed on Israel, trade with Israel must be halted, and Israel must be isolated in the international arena so long as it continues its aggression. Our initiative to stop weapons sale to Israel has been supported by 52 countries, including two permanent members of the UN Security Council, and two international organizations.”

Emphasizing the need to encourage as many countries as possible, particularly OIC member states, to intervene in the case filed by the Republic of South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice, President Erdoğan said: “As Türkiye, we have imposed restrictions on trade with Israel. We stand ready to implement all tangible and concrete proposals that would make the Netanyahu government feel the cost of occupying Palestinian territories.”

“WE ALL SEE THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF REACHING A TWO-STATE SOLUTION BY SEEKING THE CURRENT ISRAELI GOVERNMENT’S APPROVAL”

“The United Nations General Assembly adopted a decision on September 18 for the implementation of the International Court of Justice’s advisory opinion on Palestine. I am of the opinion that we should closely monitor the execution of this decision,” stressed President Erdoğan. “We all see the impossibility of reaching a two-state solution by seeking the current Israeli government’s approval. Under these circumstances, we should encourage more countries to recognize the state of Palestine. Indeed, nine more countries have recognized the state of Palestine since October 7. I believe that we will break the resistance at the Security Council, too, and will reach the days when the state of Palestine becomes a full-fledged member of the United Nations.”

Praising the participation of more than 90 countries in the international alliance meeting held in Riyadh on October 30-31 for the promotion of the two-state solution as a promising development, President Erdoğan said: “I pray to Allah that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League show it to the whole world that they are of one voice and one heart on the Palestinian issue. I hope the decisions to be taken here will be fully implemented by all countries. As I conclude my remarks, I wish today’s meeting to yield auspicious outcomes for the people of Palestine and Lebanon, and offer my gratitude to anyone who contributed to holding this meeting.”