Turkish President Erdogan calls Netanyahu ‘Hitler’, blinded by ‘blood, hatred’; threatens to invade Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday (local time) threatened to invade Israel as scheduled negotiations between the US and Iran in Pakistan failed. Slamming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Erdogan called him a "Hitler" who's blinded by "blood and hatred."

According to Israel Hayom, Erdogan said that if negotiations aren't taking place between Washington and Tehran, Ankara would "show Israel its place." At a political event in Turkiye, he said, "On the day of the ceasefire, Israel killed hundreds of innocent Lebanese people. Netanyahu is blinded by blood and hatred. Had Pakistan not been mediating in the war between the US and Iran, we would have shown Israel its place," Erdogan said in a speech at a political event in Turkey."

He went on to say, "Just as we entered Libya and Karabakh, we can enter Israel. There is no reason not to do it. It will require strength and unity."

Netanyahu slams Erdogan

His remarks came a day after Benjamin Netanyahu levelled criticism at the Turkish President, adding that he was persecuting Kurds in the eastern part of the country. In a post on X, Netanyahu wrote, "Israel under my leadership will continue to fight Iran’s terror regime and its proxies, unlike Erdogan, who accommodates them and massacres his own Kurdish citizens."

Israel's Defense Minister Israel Katz also levelled allegations against Turkiye, accusing it of antisemitism and sham trials against Israeli political and military leadership.

Turkiye hits back

In a strongly worded criticism, Turkiye's Ministry of Foreign Affairs described Netanyahu as the "Hitler" of our time because of the crimes he has committed. It added that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has also issued an arrest warrant against Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The statement added, "Under Netanyahu's administration, Israel is facing proceedings before the International Court of Justice on charges of genocide. Netanyahu's current objective is to undermine ongoing peace negotiations and continue his expansionist policies in the region. Failing this, he risks being tried in his own country and is likely to be sentenced to imprisonment.

The fact that our President has been targeted by Israeli officials with baseless, brazen, and false allegations is a result of the discomfort caused by the truths we have consistently voiced on every platform."

Turkiye's Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus also hit out at Netanyahu, calling him "the ringleader terrorist of the 21st century."

US-Iran peace talks failed

The development comes as the peace talks between the US and Iranian delegations, held in Pakistan's Islamabad, failed. The talks, which were held on 10 April, nearly three days after a two-week ceasefire was announced, continued for over 21 hours. However, no agreement was reached. Both the Iranian and the US delegations, led by Vice President JD Vance, blamed each other for failed negotiations, with reports adding that the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran's nuclear program remained the bone of contention.

What remains to be seen if the two sides will come together again for another round of negotiations while a ceasefire is in place, and whether Israel will stop attacking Lebanon to ensure that a ceasefire agreement between Tehran and Washington stays in place.