Israel is Occupier: Erdogan Tells Pro-Palestinian Rally

 

Image Source: Al-Jazeera

Addressing hundreds of thousands of supporters, Erdogan accused the West of being the main culprit in the Gaza war.

At a large pro-Palestinian rally in Istanbul, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Israel was occupying the Gaza Strip, and reiterated his position that Hamas was not a terrorist organization.

I reiterate that Hamas is not a terrorist organization. Israel is very angry about this ... Israel is an occupier, Erdogan speaks clearly because Turkey does not owe you anything," he told hundreds of thousands of supporters on Saturday.

People gathered at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport for a rally by Turkey's ruling AK Party to protest Israel's continued bombing of the Gaza Strip and call for a ceasefire.

Demonstrators chanted pro-Palestinian slogans and waved Turkish and Palestinian flags at an event dubbed the "Great Palestine Meeting" on Saturday, as Israel launched its "expanded" landmines in the Gaza Strip amid a near-total communications blackout. Proceeded the action.

The rally was attended by leaders of other political parties as well as media and sports dignitaries – some of whom were expected to take to the stage during the event, local media reported.

 

Erdogan told the crowd that Western powers were the "main culprits" behind the Israeli army's "massacre" of Palestinians in Gaza.

 

"The real culprit behind the carnage in Gaza is the West."

'End the Genocide'

Al Jazeera's Osama bin Javed, reporting from the rally, said it was "one of the strongest speeches we've ever heard" from the president.

Protesters were seen wearing headbands that read "We are all Palestinians", "End the genocide", or "Be the voice of Palestinian children".

Since Friday evening, Gaza's 2.3 million residents have been cut off from all communications with each other, as well as with the outside world, as Israeli ground forces battle Hamas fighters inside the enclave.

According to Palestinian health officials, at least 7,703 Palestinians, including nearly 3,000 children, have been killed by Israeli bombardment since October 7. More than 1400 people were killed in Hamas attack on Israel.

Large protest in London; Banned in Berlin

Meanwhile, thousands of protesters were seen taking to the streets of London to demand a ceasefire from the British government. Other rallies were taking place elsewhere in the UK, including Manchester and Glasgow.

Aerial footage shows a large crowd turning out for a march organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which was due to end outside the Houses of Parliament after Prime Minister Rishi Singh passed his Downing Street office.

Echoing Washington's stance, Sink's government has stopped short of calling for a ceasefire, and instead advocated a humanitarian pause to get aid to people in Gaza.

Police in Berlin broke up pro-Palestinian protests again on Friday evening.

More than 100 people were arrested in front of the Brandenburg Gate after a crowd shouted pro-Palestinian and then anti-police slogans during an unauthorized rally. Police clashed violently with some of the participants, according to police, injuring two officers.

Another pro-Palestinian demonstration involving about 100 people also broke up on Alexanderplatz in central Berlin on Friday evening. Police said on Saturday that any protestors were "aggressively approached and continuously removed from the square".

Authorities in Berlin have banned most pro-Palestinian rallies or demonstrations in the weeks since the October 7 attack by Hamas.

(Courtesy: Al-Jazeera)