Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sharply criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday.
Netanyahu called Erdogan a “tyrant” and accused Turkey of illegally occupying the northern part of Cyprus, an EU member state. He also accused Turkey of regularly acting against Greece, a NATO member.
Netanyahu’s Claims About Turkey
In his speech, Netanyahu also accused Erdogan of hosting Hamas leaders, imprisoning journalists and opposition figures, and killing Kurdish civilians.
He further claimed that Turkey seeks greater influence in Syria and accused Erdogan of calling for Israel’s destruction. These were statements made by the Israeli prime minister during his UN address.
The remarks came as tensions between Israel and Turkey have increasingly featured in regional diplomatic disputes.
Turkey Responds to Netanyahu
Turkey hit back on Friday through presidential communications director Burhanettin Duran.
Duran condemned Netanyahu’s comments and accused the Israeli prime minister of using the UN platform for what he described as baseless accusations against Turkey and Erdogan.
The Cyprus issue also featured prominently in other speeches at this year’s UN General Assembly. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis described Cyprus as a “litmus test” of the UN’s credibility and called for the island’s reunification in line with UN resolutions.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
