Antalya, Nov 12:
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday denounced the ongoing war in Gaza as both a “genocide” and an “ecocide” while addressing world leaders at the United Nations climate summit (COP31) in Antalya, drawing a sharp rebuttal from Israel.
Speaking to applause from climate envoys, Erdogan said centuries-old olive groves had been destroyed, soil and water heavily polluted, and entire cities reduced to rubble, leaving tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians exposed to torrential rain and flooding inside makeshift tents. He urged the international community to recognize the severe environmental devastation in the territory and pressed Israel to allow unrestricted humanitarian aid inflows.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry rejected the remarks, accusing Erdogan of using an international forum to spread “anti-Israel lies” while hosting Hamas leaders in Turkey, and insisting that reconstruction could only begin once Hamas disarms. According to a United Nations Environment Programme assessment, over 97 per cent of Gaza’s tree crops and 82 per cent of annual crops have been damaged, virtually collapsing water, sewage, and agricultural systems.