Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on May 17 said U.S. President Joe Biden had “bloody hands” because of his support of Israel in the raging attacks on the Gaza Strip.
The Turkish president’s comments in a nationally televised address represented one of his strongest comments on Biden since his arrival in the White House in January.
“You are writing history with your bloody hands,” Erdoğan said .
“You forced us to say this. Because we can not stay silent on this anymore.”
Erdoğan has gained support across the Middle East by championing the Palestinian cause during his 18-year rule.
He accused Israel last week of waging “terrorism” and vowed to rally the world to Gaza’s defense.
“Today we saw Biden’s signature on weapons sales to Israel,” Erdoğan said on Monday in reference to U.S. media reports of a new arms shipment approved by the Biden administration.
“Palestine territories are awash with persecution, suffering and blood, like many other territories that lost the peace with the end of the Ottomans. And you are supporting that,” Erdoğan told Biden.
He also lashed out at Austria for flying the flag of Israel in a sign of “solidarity” with the Jewish state last week.
“I condemn Austria for hanging the Israeli terror state’s flag,” Erdoğan said.
“The Austrian state seems to be trying to make Muslims pay the price for (its role) in the Holocaust.”
Erdogan has been waging a diplomatic campaign to impose sanctions and other punishments on Israel for a military attack that has claimed the lives of more that 200 Palestinians since May 10.
“Palestinians will continue to be subjected to a massacre unless the international community punishes Israel… with sanctions”, Erdoğan’s office quoted him as saying in a call with Pope Francis earlier Monday.
He also suggested that Jerusalem should be governed by a new administration “composed of representatives of the three religions” – Judaism, Islam and Christianity.