Türkiye rejects military cooperation claims with Israel
The Defense Ministry rejected claims of cooperation with Israel, especially in the defense sector, which it said would harm Palestinians.
“It is not possible for the Republic of Türkiye, which has always supported Palestine, to carry out or engage in any activity that would harm the Palestinians,” the ministry said Tuesday.
“The National Defense Ministry does not have any activities with Israel, including military training, exercises, and defense industry cooperation.”
It added that Israel’s ongoing acts of violence in the Gaza Strip, targeting hospitals, schools, places of worship, refugee camps, and civilians, unfortunately continue “without discrimination.”
Ankara has been a staunch advocate of a two-state solution, with an independent Palestine, even before a new round of conflict began between Palestine and Israel last October. This time, it escalated its rhetoric against the United States over the latter’s blatant support of what President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan calls “war crimes” committed by the Netanyahu administration against innocent Palestinians.
Türkiye collaborates with Egypt, which hosts the only feasible land crossing with Gaza for the delivery of aid.
Since the new round of conflict broke in the region, Türkiye sent thousands of tons of aid to Egypt for delivery to Gaza, either by military planes or vessels. Turkish charities organized nationwide campaigns to collect donations for Gazans.
Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Palestinian territory since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas which killed nearly 1,200 people.
At least 32,414 Palestinians have since been killed and 74,787 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.
On Monday, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, but Israel rejected it and vowed to continue its war on the Palestinian enclave.
The Israeli war, now in its 172nd day, has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
Source: Daily Sabah
