Turkey's president calls war in Gaza 'ecocide' at UN climate summit
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called for the world to recognize the environmental impacts of the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and asked the Israeli government to grant more aid access to the Palestinian territory. Erdogan was speaking at the U.N. climate summit, known as COP31, in Antalya, Turkey. “What has taken place in Gaza is not only a genocide, but it is also an ecocide,”…
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed the United Nations climate summit, known as COP31, in Antalya, Turkey, on Wednesday. He urged the global community to acknowledge the environmental consequences of the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza and called for improved access to aid within the Palestinian territory.
Erdogan's remarks, which were met with applause from world leaders and other climate advocates, came as a U.N.-backed panel of experts determined last year that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza. Israel strongly rejects these allegations, accusing the panel of antisemitism.
Highlighting the devastation wrought by the war, Erdogan described the destruction of olive trees that have been cultivated for centuries, pollution of soil and water, and the obliteration of cities in Gaza, leaving them reduced to heaps of rubble. He also noted the exacerbating effect of torrential rains and flooding on the already devastated infrastructure, leading to tens of thousands of tents and shelters being swept away.
In response, Israel's Foreign Ministry posted on X, accusing Erdogan of exploiting an international forum to push a specific narrative.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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