This story originally appeared in the JC Israel Briefing. You can sign up to receive the briefing daily here.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has accused his Turkish opposite number, Hakan Fidan, of “inciting genocide” after the latter suggested that the “Israeli authorities” are “a burden that humanity can no longer bear”.
In an interview with CNN Türk, Fidan said: “Israel has become a problem for the entire international community.”
“The Israeli authorities have become a burden that humanity can no longer bear,” Fidan added, accusing Israel of “openly committing massacres” in Gaza and playing a “destabilising role everywhere”.
He also defended Turkey’s decision to halt trade with Israel, saying: “Our president stopped $10 billion worth of trade with Israel overnight.
“It is important to take a firm stand and start doing something.”
Responding to the comments, Sa’ar accused the Turkish foreign minister of using language historically associated with antisemitic incitement.
“Dehumanising the Jewish people and presenting them as an ‘unbearable burden’ is the classic language of the greatest tyrants in history,” he said.
“The enlightened world and Turkey’s NATO allies must unequivocally condemn this explicit call for the destruction of Israel.”
The dispute follows Israel’s historic decision earlier this week to formally recognise the Armenian genocide, ending decades of diplomatic ambiguity on the issue.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reacted angrily to the move, accusing Israel of attempting to obscure its actions in Gaza.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Erdoğan said accusations against Turkey came from “a murder network whose hands are stained with the blood of 75,000 innocent Gazans”.
“There is no oppression, massacre, colonialism or genocide in our history,” he went on, insisting Turkey’s past was marked by “mercy” and protection for persecuted minorities.
Relations between Israel and Turkey have deteriorated massively since the October 7 Hamas attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza, with Turkey joining South Africa's ICC case against Israel.
This story originally appeared in the JC Israel Briefing. You can sign up to receive the briefing daily here.
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