First lady Emine Erdoğan on Wednesday urged the international community to take action against Israel’s attacks on Gaza. In a social media post following Israel’s massacre of civilians in a hospital attack on Tuesday in Gaza, Erdoğan said it was not only innocent civilians losing their lives but also “the very conscience and compassion of all humanity are also perishing in Gaza.”
She reiterated that Türkiye hosted a meeting of first ladies and gentlemen in Istanbul in 2009 for the “Women for Peace in Palestine Meeting” and appealed to the world for the innocent lives lost back then.
“Those days were also full of grief and tears, and we were witnessing a great human tragedy amid suffering. As Türkiye, we stood up to the oppressor and cried 'peace!' to the rest of the world. Once again, we are in the same place. I appeal to humanity watching this oppression from afar: kites should soar over Gaza, not bombs! Children’s laughter should be heard, not their screams of pain! The skies should be full of clouds, not smoke! As the voice of the oppressed and innocent, Türkiye will continue to extend its helping hand to the people of Gaza. I call on the international community to take concrete steps, and I hope there will be no more bloodshed,” Erdoğan said.
The first lady also shared a video showing the footage of the hospital attack and footage of her speech at the 2009 meeting. The video ended with her message: “Wars have no winner and a fair peace has no losers.” She also shared the same message in Arabic.
