President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday hit back at those taking sides in the U.S.-Israel-Iran war and criticized those looking at the situation through a sectarian perspective.
"There is no difference between bloodshed in Iran, (in Gulf countries), Lebanon. Everyone mercilessly slaughtered is our brothers and sisters. For attackers, there is no difference between Shiite and Sunni. We don’t discriminate between our neighbors, brothers; we stand by our brothers for the good and bad," he said at a speech at an event organized by his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Ankara on Thursday.
"It is not right to incite the (sectarian) divide, not right to serve the Zionist agenda of dividing and conquering," he added.
"With Israel's provocations on Feb. 28, the operations initiated against Iran continue to drown our region in blood and the smell of gunpowder. Children who know nothing are becoming targets of bombs while listening to lessons in their schools. Our region is experiencing the most difficult period of the last century. The network of genocide is dragging our geography into a great dead end. Those mercilessly killed are our brothers. The children dying at school desks are our offspring. What is the difference between the tears shed in Isfahan, Tabriz and Tehran and those shed in Beirut, Doha, and Riyadh? What difference does it make to the massacre network if our name is Ali, Murtaza or Omer? Whether in Iran or the Gulf, are we not the ones harmed by every missile fired? Even if our sects and origins are different, is it not our blood flowing in all four corners of our geography? Let everyone be sure of this: We neither discriminate between our brothers and neighbors nor do we remain spectators to the pain of our brothers. We do not leave the brotherly and friendly nations we know in good times alone in their bad days. The heavy bill that has emerged is being paid first by Muslims and then by everyone," he said.
Türkiye maintains close ties with all sides of the conflict except Israel. “The brotherly Turkish nation played an important role in solidarity with the Muslim ummah for years. We will continue this honorable path together, with divine blessings,” Neighboring Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a tweet on Wednesday.
In a separate tweet, Pezeshkian said that "many countries" were experiencing an awakening. "The people of Pakistan, Türkiye, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, and Arab countries are loudly expressing their disgust for America, Israel and their crimes. The hearts of the free people of the world are not with the Zionists. Stability in the region is possible only through cooperation and respect for the will of the nations," he said in a tweet in Farsi.
The war led by Israel against regional countries is imposing a growing cost on the entire world, Erdoğan said Tuesday, warning that escalating tensions, including disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, are pushing the global economy into turmoil, as its consequences are being felt far beyond the Middle East.
Erdoğan on Thursday went on to criticize Israel's ongoing expansion in the region and shutdown of Muslims' sacred site Al-Aqsa Mosque.
"Israel is implementing its plan to invade Lebanon. Israel is not leaving Syria alone either. It continues its aggressive actions. It has kept our first Qibla, Al-Aqsa Mosque, closed for 27 days. For the first time since 1967, Eid prayers were not performed at Al-Aqsa Mosque. The right to worship at Al-Aqsa Mosque cannot be prevented. Taking care of Al-Aqsa Mosque is a requirement of our humanity. Türkiye will continue to do its part," Erdoğan said.
Since Israel and the U.S. started the war with Iran on Feb. 28, Israeli authorities have closed access to Jerusalem's world-renowned holy sites over security concerns, the Al-Aqsa Mosque for Muslims, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Christians and the Western Wall for Jews.
