ROME — Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by phone with Pope Francis Thursday, during which he condemned the “massacre” wrought by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the Hamas terror attack on October 7.
“Noting that Israel’s attacks against Gaza, which have no place in any of the holy texts, have escalated to massacre, President Erdoğan said that it is disgraceful for humanity that the international community has been ignoring the developments, and that all countries must raise their voices against this humanitarian tragedy,” the Turkish presidency said in a statement.
President Erdoğan also said that “lasting peace in the region, which houses the holy sites of the three Abrahamic religions, will only be possible through the establishment of an independent, sovereign and geographically integrated State of Palestine within the 1967 borders, with East al-Quds as its capital,” the text reads.
For its part, the Holy See Press Office underscored the “pope’s sorrow” over the situation while reiterating the Vatican’s advocacy for a “two-state solution.”
“I can confirm that this morning there was a telephone conversation between the pope and the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,” read an October 26 email from papal spokesman Matteo Bruni.
File/Pope Francis meets President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Apostolic Palace on February 5, 2018 in Vatican City, Vatican. A President from Turkey had not visited a Pope at the Vatican in 59 years. (Vatican Pool/Getty Images)
“The communication, requested by the latter, focused on the dramatic situation in the Holy Land,” Bruni said. “The pope expressed his sorrow for what is happening and recalled the position of the Holy See, hoping that a two-state solution and a special status for the city of Jerusalem can be reached.”
The Islamist group Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and captured some 220 hostages in a large-scale terrorist attack on October 7 in southern Israel. According to the UN, in retaliation operations the Israeli Army has so far killed more than 6,500 people in Gaza, of which more than 2,700 were children.
The Turkish presidency closed its statement by declaring that Türkiye is “making great efforts to deliver humanitarian and medical aid to Gaza, and that everyone should actively support these efforts to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of aid to innocent civilians.”
On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed his nation on the state of affairs, telling them that a ground invasion of Gaza would happen in the coming days.
“We are raining down hellfire on Hamas,” Netanyahu said. “We have already eliminated thousands of terrorists – and this is only the beginning.”
“At the same time, we are preparing for a ground incursion,” he continued. “I will not detail when, how or how many, or the overall considerations that we are taking into account, most of which are unknown to the public, and this is how it needs to be, in order to better safeguard the lives of our soldiers.”
Editor’s Note: This story was updated to reflect a revised number on the death toll from the October 7 Hamas attack in Israel. The Israeli government estimate of 1,400 was revised to around 1,200, according to Reuters.