‘Blinded by blood and hatred’ - Erdoğan renews belligerent rhetoric against Israel, Netanyahu

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan continued his sharp rhetoric against Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the past couple of days, comparing the prime minister to Hitler, and saying he is “blinded by blood and hatred.” 

Erdoğan’s remarks came during the International Conference of Asia Political Parties (ICAPP) Women’s branch in Istanbul over the weekend. There, he repeated previous claims that Israel is a “genocidal” entity, as he addressed the delegates. 

One of the claims that he repeated at the conference, as he spoke about the treatment of women, is that casualties from the October 7 Gaza War were primarily women and children, saying “the vast majority of the more than 72,000 civilians brutally murdered by Israel in Gaza were women and children.” 

The Gaza Health Ministry estimates that 72,000 people in total died during the conflict. In its death tolls during the Gaza war, the ministry does not distinguish between deaths due to the war or deaths from other causes, such as existing medical conditions, illness, or other reasons. Additionally, the GHM does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its figures. 

Independent analyses of the GHM figures show that, along with widespread discrepancies, around half of all deaths are men, the majority of whom are combat-age men. 

Erdoğan also accused Israel of crimes in Lebanon, saying, “On the day the ceasefire was declared, Israel brutally murdered 254 Lebanese. This genocidal network, blinded by blood and hatred, continues to kill innocent children, women, and civilians, disregarding all human values and ignoring all rules and principles. 

He continued his attack by claiming that the recently approved death penalty law for terrorism in Israel is “only for Palestinian prisoners,” calling it a form of “apartheid” and asking, “is there a fundamental difference between Hitler’s monstrous policies towards Jews and the decision taken by the Israeli parliament?” 

Erdoğan’s comments come as Turkish prosecutors are reportedly seeking almost 4,600 years of prison time for 35 Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Israel Katz, and others, over the interception of the anti-Israel October 2025 “Sumud” Flotilla. 

On Saturday evening, Prime Minister Netanyahu made his own criticism of Erdoğan on social media, writing, "Israel under my leadership will continue to fight Iran’s terror regime and its proxies, unlike Erdogan who accommodates them and massacred his own Kurdish citizens.” 

Netanyahu was apparently referring to Turkey’s hosting of several Hamas leaders, its statements of support for Iran since the start of the war, and its repeated attacks on Kurdish civilians, both inside Turkey and in northern Syria. 

On Sunday, Erdoğan responded with more belligerent rhetoric, saying that Turkey could decide to confront Israel militarily, according to reports in several news outlets, including The Jerusalem Post. 

“We must be strong to prevent Israel from doing this to Palestine,” Erdogan was reported to have told reporters on Sunday, again accusing Israel of war crimes. 

“Just as we entered Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we will do the same to them,” he added. “There is nothing to prevent us from doing it. We just need to be strong so that we can take these steps. There is no reason not to do it.” 

Israeli Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu responded to the Turkish provocation on social media, writing, “Turkey, which conquered Northern Cyprus and controls Kurdish territories in the east, dares to lecture us on morality.” 

“Turkey, which built its economy on the Armenian Genocide, dares to accuse us of genocide,” he continued. He went on to note that Jews have been falsely accused of many crimes throughout history, saying, “Always after every 'trial,' we came back stronger.” 

“And so it will be against this megalomaniacal dictator with imperialist ambitions who thinks to be an Ottoman Sultan, while he is no more than a pathetic tyrant of a country with a collapsing economy and a dead democracy,” Eliyahu wrote, saying that he would “demand from the Foreign Minister and the Prime Minister to close the embassy and consulate immediately.”