Gaza bloodshed to end only if Netanyahu ousted from power: Erdogan

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
19 Dec 2023 19:04
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The Turkish head of State emphasized that leaving office will not exempt Netanyahu from legal consequences.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a joint statement with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Carmelite Monastery in Budapest, Hungary, Monday, Dec. 18, 2023. (AP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday implied that the bloodshed in Gaza would end solely on the condition that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu be removed from office.

"Those who do not listen to us or do not believe us when we say that Netanyahu will be out will see his exit. But his leaving office will not save him. We will persecute him legally … I hope that Israel's cabinet reshuffle will put an end to this bloodshed," Erdogan told reporters.

He also pledged to hold accountable all those responsible for the killing of civilians in Gaza. According to Gaza's health ministry, the Israeli genocidal campaign has resulted in more than 19,400 Palestinians killed and over 52,000 others injured.

Netanyahu is facing pressure from the Israeli population following his admission that three escapees were unintentionally killed by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in Gaza. He asserts that the genocidal campaign will persist until the remaining captives are liberated.

Is Netanyahu using the war to remain in power?

Earlier in the day, Israeli media quoted Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, in what it called "harsh" claims of Netanyahu using the war in Gaza as a means to stay in power.

In detail, Israeli media reported that "Lieberman continues to attack Netanyahu, claiming that the continuation of the war serves him politically."

In an interview for Israeli radio Reshet Bet, Lieberman said, "There is a turbulent war cabinet here that does not understand what it [the war] leads to," adding that "the Yom Kippur war lasted 19 days, and here we are fighting for 74 days and still in the process of assimilation in the north, and we cannot ignore Ansar Allah as well."

It was after this statement that Lieberman accused Netanyahu of using the war to assimilate political power.