Turkish President Compares Israeli Prime Minister to Hitler

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler in his latest salvo criticizing Israel’s conduct in the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Erdoğan made the provocative statement on Wednesday, labeling Israel as a “terror state” and characterizing Israel’s Western allies as complicit in what he called war crimes. He also declared that his country would gladly welcome academics and researchers who were being prosecuted and vilified for their views on the Gaza conflict.

“They used to speak ill of Hitler. What difference do you have from Hitler? They are going to make us miss Hitler. Is what Netanyahu is doing any less than what Hitler did? It is not,” Erdoğan said.

As Germany’s ruler from 1933 to 1945, Hitler was responsible for sparking the Second World War, in which some 60 million people were killed, as well as for the specific program of genocide against the Jews in which some 6 million Jews were murdered.

The Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7 after Hamas terrorists invaded Israel and slaughtered some 1,200 people as well as taking over 240 people hostage.

Since the conflict erupted, Erdoğan has not shied away from using inflammatory rhetoric against Israel. Turkey, the only Muslim-majority NATO member state, has been one of the leading voices from the military alliance to call for a cease-fire, causing further friction in the already strained relationship between Turkey and the United States, which has largely supported Israel in the current conflict.

Unlike many in the US and many of its Arab allies, the Turkish government does not view Hamas as a terrorist organization and allows its members to operate freely within the country, despite US sanctions packages.

In response to Erdoğan’s comments, Netanyahu issued a statement saying, “Erdoğan, who commits genocide against the Kurds, who holds a world record for imprisoning journalists who oppose his rule, is the last person who can preach morality to us.”

Israeli-Turkish economic ties and overall trade have remained in place through the conflict despite the Turkish leader’s rhetoric.

Meanwhile, Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler issued a video statement on social media platform X on Wednesday in which he announced that Turkey had conducted 70 strikes against Kurdish targets in Syria and Iraq and had eliminated 59 Kurdish insurgents.

“Our pain is great, but our determination is complete. … We avenged the deaths of our precious children, and we will continue to do so,” he said.