In recent months, Erdogan has hinted that once Israel achieves its goals of destroying Hamas's military and freeing hostages taken by the group on October 7, it might turn its attention toward Ankara.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has recently hinted that his country may intervene Israel to stop the ongoing war in Gaza which began on October 7. Erdogan has been a strong critic of Israel's actions.
In a speech praising Turkey’s defense industry, Erdogan addressed the Israel-Palestine conflict, stating that Turkey would not allow Israel to "do ridiculous things to Palestine."
He referred to Turkey’s past interventions in Karabakh and Libya to imply that Turkey might act similarly if necessary.
"There is no reason why we cannot do this ... We must be strong so that we can take these steps," Erdogan added in the televised address.
“Just as we entered [Nagorno-]Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them. There is nothing we can’t do. We must only be strong," he added.
Israel's Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, has criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his recent remarks. Katz accused Erdogan of following in the footsteps of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, whose regime was overthrown by American forces in 2003 under then-President George Bush.
Katz in a post on X wrote, "Erdogan follows in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein and threatens to attack Israel. Just let him remember what happened there and how it ended."
In recent months, Erdogan has hinted that once Israel achieves its goals of destroying Hamas's military and freeing hostages taken by the group on October 7, it might turn its attention toward Ankara.
Erdogan has also criticized his Western and NATO allies, accusing them of supporting Israel and attempting to spread war across the Middle East.
In 2020, under Erdogan’s leadership, Turkey supported Azerbaijan during a 44-day conflict with Armenia over a land dispute involving the Artsakh region (also known as Nagorno-Karabakh).
Turkey did not directly intervene with its military but provided assistance, including deploying Syrian mercenaries and supplying drones.