Keeping Erdogan Out of Gaza

 Nadene Goldfoot                                        

                                  Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician who has been the president of Turkey since 2014; the past 12 years.   Coming from an Islamist background and promoting socially conservative policies, Turkey has experienced increasing authoritarianism, democratic backsliding and suppression of dissent under Erdoğan's rule.    

Turkey is not a friend of Israel,   Not that it matters today, but Turkey was the OTTOMAN EMPIRE and had taken over Israel.  The Ottoman Empire ruled the region of modern-day Israel from 1517 to 1917, conquering it from the Mamluk Sultanate and holding control until the British captured Jerusalem in December 1917 during World War I, ending Ottoman rule.

 The Ottoman Empire had been on the side of the Germans and lost their lands.                                    

              Erdogan

Netanyahu has been explicit in telling Trump that he does not want Turkeyinvolved in anything in Gaza.  Turkey is always against Israel no matter what. 

The Syrian deal with SDF could lead to Turkey-PKK peace, Turkish officials say.  Who is the PKK?  The PKK, established in 1978 in Turkey, is a militant Kurdish separatist group with a Marxist-Leninist ideology. It originally sought to create a unified, independent Kurdistan and to gain control of Kurdish areas of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. The PKK has moderated its calls for complete independence and advocated instead for a confederation of semiautonomous Kurdish regions.

The PKK views the Turkish Government as an obstacle to achieving its aims and has launched attacks against Turkish targets since its founding. The PKK is headquartered in Iraq and has targeted Turkish forces in Iraq and Turkey. In early 2025, the group’s founder called for the PKK to demilitarize and dissolve, a statement that may mark a turning  point in its identity. 

Turkish journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül were arrested for leaking classified information about Turkish support to Islamist fighters in Syria.

Erdogen and Israel :  Their relationship worsened at the 2009 World Economic Forum conference over Israel's actions during the Gaza War. Erdoğan was interrupted by the moderator while he was responding to Peres. Erdoğan stated: "Mister Peres, you are older than I am. Maybe you are feeling guilty and that is why you are raising your voice. When it comes to killing you know it too well. I remember how you killed the children on beaches..." Upon the moderator's reminder that they needed to adjourn for dinner, Erdoğan left the panel, accusing the moderator of giving Peres more time than all the other panelists combined.

Tensions increased further following the Gaza flotilla raid in May 2010. Erdoğan strongly condemned the raid, describing it as "state terrorism", and demanded an Israeli apology. 

In February 2013, Erdoğan called Zionism a "crime against humanity", comparing it to Islamophobia, antisemitism, and fascism. He later retracted the statement, saying he had been misinterpreted. He said "everyone should know" that his comments were directed at "Israeli policies", especially as regards "Gaza and the settlements".

 Erdoğan's statements were criticized by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, among others. In August 2013, the Hürriyet reported that Erdoğan had claimed to have evidence of Israel's responsibility for the removal of Morsi from office in Egypt. The Israeli and Egyptian governments dismissed the suggestion..

In response to the 2014 Gaza War, Erdoğan accused Israel of conducting "state terrorism" and a "genocide attempt" against the Palestinians. He also stated that "If Israel continues with this attitude, it will definitely be tried at international courts.

One can see that Israel will not tolerate Erdogan in Gaza for any reason.