PNN – The former Prime Minister of Turkey believes that in the Gaza bill, what has been highlighted as the top priority is the security of the Zionist regime, not the situation of the Palestinians.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, in recent days, Turkish officials—especially President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan—have noticeably changed the tone of their statements about the events in Gaza, and their criticisms of the Zionist regime have decreased. However, three political parties in Turkey strongly oppose the provisions of the text known as the Gaza bill and believe that Islamic countries should not align with Western states in supporting this plan.
The Islamist Felicity Party, made up of the old students of the late Necmettin Erbakan, considers the Gaza bill a text that refuses to take into account the difficult conditions of the people of Gaza and the rights of Palestinians.
The Communist Party of the Homeland has also announced that these Western actions have two main objectives: disarming the Hamas movement and paving the way for the continuation of the Zionist regime’s regional threats from Gaza and Lebanon to Syria. The third Turkish political party opposing the Gaza bill is the Future Party, led by former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu.
In recent days, the Future Party has carried out extensive diplomatic and media efforts in support of Palestine. Sema Silkin Ün, one of the leaders of this party, stated in a press conference in the Turkish Parliament: The bill drafted with the U.S. view of Gaza is a text whose main aim is not peace in Gaza, but is focused on Israel’s security priorities, and it postpones the Palestinian right to establish a state to an unknown future.
This politician of Turkey’s Future Party further stated: Since the Sharm el-Sheikh summit until now, the ceasefire has been violated 282 times by Israeli soldiers, and in addition, the bombardment of the people of Gaza has continued, in such a way that unfortunately 300 civilians have lost their lives and hundreds have been injured. Under such conditions, the flow of aid has also become very difficult and limited.
Ms. Silkin Ün went on to criticize the policies of the Erdoğan government and the Justice and Development Party regarding the Palestinian issue, and said: “Unfortunately, today in Turkey we face the risk that the issue of Gaza may be removed from the political agenda of the government, political parties, and civil society. In this bill, a political effort can be seen to institutionalize Trump’s peace plan under the umbrella of the United Nations, using two elements — a peace committee and a peace-stabilization force. But regarding the Palestinian right to self-determination, there are no precise terms, and we believe that this bill creates serious risks for Palestine. Because there is no explicit reference to the status of a Palestinian state. It is as though self-determination is considered not a legal right, but a reward for a long-term process! While the disarmament of Gaza is defined as the first stage, no timetable or guarantee for Israel’s withdrawal has been provided.”
The Future Party of Turkey also stated in a separate declaration that in this bill, by appealing to international financial institutions, an effort is being made to place Palestine under foreign debt even before it becomes a state. In addition, the bill contains no provisions on Israel’s war crimes, its continuous violations of international law, or the rulings of the International Court of Justice, and it could open the door to a process similar to the attempt to legitimize the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Davutoğlu’s letters to Russia and China
Through the embassies of China and Russia in Ankara, Ahmet Davutoğlu sent two letters to the presidents of these countries. In his letters to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the Gaza bill, Davutoğlu stated that the bill has not respected the will of the Palestinian people or the resolutions of the United Nations. According to Davutoğlu, at this stage, China and Russia can influence and change the path of the final decision.
The leader of Turkey’s Future Party said: Without a doubt, the positions of Russia and China at the Sharm el-Sheikh summit on October 13 are commendable. However, despite the announcement and implementation of the ceasefire, nearly 300 Palestinians have lost their lives during the intervention due to Israeli attacks, and humanitarian aid convoys cannot easily assist the people of Gaza. Under these circumstances, the current draft presented to the UN Security Council does not prioritize sustainable peace; instead, it considers Israel’s security interests as the main priority and central focus.
Davutoğlu further pointed out that the international security force, which is foreseen in the draft bill and whose main mission is “disarming Gaza,” is willing to protect Israel’s priorities, but has no opinion regarding the security of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
In the former Turkish Prime Minister’s letter, five key points for the proper implementation of a ceasefire and a sustainable solution to the Palestinian issue are highlighted:
- Any proposed solution to the Palestinian issue must be discussed in the United Nations Security Council and the UN General Assembly and should not be considered as personal programs of any leader.
- The “disarming Gaza” mission assigned to the international security force in this bill could allow Israel to carry out broader military operations in the future. This mission must be revised to also include Gaza and Palestine’s security concerns. Lasting peace cannot be achieved without recognizing the right of the Palestinian people to defend themselves.
- Palestinians should have authority in determining the composition of the forces, and unilateral actions by Israel should not be permitted.
- Any decision or action regarding the ceasefire must include the perspective of a two-state solution based on the resolutions of the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly.
- As a natural condition for a two-state solution, the State of Palestine must be recognized by the UN Security Council, and the inequality of status between the parties must end.
Aktay: Our problem is not the number of people
Professor Yasin Aktay, a Turkish political analyst of Arab descent who previously served as an advisor to the country’s president, is another person who has criticized the Gaza bill in recent days. The difference is that Aktay, in addition to the United States and the Zionist regime, has also criticized the Islamic world countries and says: Weakness against Israel is not due to the small number of Muslims. Gaza has shown us that 40,000 brave hearts can accomplish what 2 billion could not, much more easily. For two years, 40,000 Palestinians have resisted the power of the world and shattered the myth of Israel. Israel, which with all its arrogance and audacity started its two-year genocidal war against Hamas, failed from the beginning in achieving its two declared major goals. They could neither capture the hostages through fighting nor destroy Hamas. The hostages were delivered under an agreement in which Hamas was one of the parties, and Hamas recruited hundreds, perhaps thousands, of new forces. Furthermore, the Palestinian cause has entirely become a global and universal cause, and Israel has been humiliated and isolated worldwide.
Aktay further says: Although the governments of the Islamic world often do nothing for Gaza and Palestine, civil institutions and elites have entered the field, and the experiences we had in Konya in holding dozens of meetings on Islamic world unity and expressing Gaza’s suffering are now being repeated in other provinces. Paying attention to the current tragedy of Gaza does not only mean paying attention to the pain of the Palestinian people; we must also think about why the two-billion-strong Islamic world population has been unable to take a unified stance to support Gaza.