October 7, 2024 | Policy Brief

Erdogan Accuses Israel of Intending to Invade Turkey

October 7, 2024 | Policy Brief

Erdogan Accuses Israel of Intending to Invade Turkey

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin’s Netanyahu government harbored ambitions that include the capture of Anatolia as part of “Greater Israel,” warning of a war between the two states. While predictions of Israeli aggression toward Turkey are not rooted in reality, they could indicate Ankara’s willingness to escalate its involvement in regional violence against Israel.

Addressing the opening ceremony of Turkey’s new parliamentary session, Erdogan remarked, “The Israeli leadership acting with the delirium of the promised land and with a purely religious fanaticism, will set its sights on our homeland after Palestine and Lebanon.”

Erdogan’s comments come shortly after Jerusalem responded to a year of near-daily rocket and drone attacks from Hezbollah against northern Israel by launching a ground offensive into Lebanon and successfully killing the terrorist group’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah. Iran fired 181 ballistic missiles at Israel in retaliation. The Israeli government has vowed to respond to the Iranian attack.

This is not the first time that Erdogan has alluded to an armed conflict with Israel. At a party conference on July 28, Erdogan said, “We must be very strong so that Israel can’t do these things to Palestine. Just as we entered Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them. There is nothing we cannot do. Only we must be strong.”

Since October 7, 2023, Erdogan has continuously worked to undermine Israel’s ability to defend itself. Turkey is the only country in NATO to champion the cause of Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization under the laws of the United States, the European Union, and Canada. Erdogan has ramped up his provision of diplomatic and logistical support to Hamas. There is also a growing body of evidence that funding and weapons supplied by Turkey have been used by the group to plot terrorist attacks against Israel. 

Most recently, Erdogan encouraged the United Nations General Assembly to use force against Israel if the UN Security Council failed to stop Israeli measures against terror groups in Gaza and Lebanon. He also criticized Muslim countries who have not taken a more active stance against Israel and urged them to increase economic, diplomatic, and political pressure against the Jewish state to encourage a ceasefire in Gaza.

As the threat of conflict engulfing the entire region continues to increase, Erdogan’s words and actions are dangerous and contradict core U.S. and NATO objectives. His inflammatory rhetoric is similar to the sentiments uttered by the regime in Tehran. Both Ankara and the Islamic Republic vilify the Jewish state and praise the actions of terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah.

Recent media reporting indicates that Washington and Ankara are engaged in talks exploring ways to re-integrate Turkey into the F-35 fighter jet program. Erdogan’s words are a clear signal to the Biden administration and its forthcoming successor that Ankara is intent on undermining and degrading the security interests of U.S. allies and the stability of the Middle East. Turkey should not be able to acquire the F-35 strategic platform while its adversarial behavior continues.

Sinan Ciddi is a non-resident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, where Sophia Epley is an intern. Sophia is also a student at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. For more analysis from Sinan and Sophia, please subscribe HERE. Follow Sinan on X @SinanCiddi. Follow FDD on X @FDD. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

Issues:

Issues:

International Organizations Israel Palestinian Politics Turkey

Topics:

Topics:

Ankara Benjamin Netanyahu European Union Foundation for Defense of Democracies Gaza City Hamas Hassan Nasrallah Hezbollah Iran Islamic republic Israel Jerusalem Jewish people Joe Biden Lebanon Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Middle East Muslims NATO Recep Tayyip Erdoğan State of Palestine Tehran Turkey United Nations General Assembly United States Washington