Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said at an April 17, 2024 speech streamed live on the AK Party YouTube channel that since October 7, 2023, Israel has been perpetrating a genocide in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank with unconditional Western support, and he asserted that Israel surpassed Hitler "long ago." He reiterated his previous stance that Hamas is a resistance group and not a terrorist organization, and he compared it to Turkey's National Forces during Turkey's national struggles. He claimed that many of the attempted coups in Turkey were done to break Turkey's support for the Palestinian cause, adding that Turkey will continue to courageously support the struggle for Palestinian independence.
To view the clip of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, click here or below:
"Hamas Is A Resistance Group, Not A Terror Organization"
Erdoğan: "Dear brother and sisters, since October 7 the terrorist state of Israel has been perpetrating a genocide in both Gaza and in the West Bank. With the unconditional support it receives from the West, it is recklessly and in a spoiled fashion sustaining a massacre that even now is recorded with shame in history.
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"This weekend, the leader of the Palestinian cause will again be my guest. We will discuss many things. Do not forget that the September 12 [1980] coup came after the Jerusalem rally in Konya. Do not forget that the February 28 [1997] coup came after the Jerusalem night in Sincan. Do not forget that the operation carried out against [Turkey's intelligence agency] MIT, the attempted coup of December 17-25 [2013], and the July 15 [2016] act of treason by the treacherous FETÖ organization, which is the servant of Zionism, were all done to break our sensitivity to the Palestinian cause.
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"When nobody in the world could speak out [this way], we went out and said that Hamas is a resistance group not a terror organization.
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"Here, I say very openly and clearly: Hamas is what the National Forces were during [Turkey's] national struggle.
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Israel "Surpassed Hitler Long Ago"; "We Will Continue To Support The Struggle For The Independence Of Palestine"
"Brothers and sisters, they have killed 14,000 children! They surpassed Hitler long ago. Despite those who ignore the deaths of 14,000 children and try to ingratiate themselves with Israel by calling Hamas a terrorist organization, we will continue to support with courage – and under every condition – the struggle for the independence of Palestine."
Crowd: "Down with Israel! Down with Israel! Down with Israel! Down with Israel!"
