Erdogan slams Israel’s ‘genocidal mindset’ in blistering UN address

SaveSharefacebookxwhatsapp-strokecopylinkTurkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly on September 22, 2026, in New York City [Spencer Platt/Getty Images/AFP]By Al Jazeera StaffPublished On 22 Sep 202622 Sep 2026Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned Israeli actions in Gaza and the occupied West Bank in a blistering speech at the United Nations General Assembly.In a speech that saw the Israeli delegation walk out and Palestinian representatives applaud, Erdogan addressed Israel’s continuing war crimes in Gaza and the escalation of settler pogroms in the occupied West Bank.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Iran delegation to present narrative of resilience, diplomacy at UNGAlist 2 of 3Putin, Xi reaffirm Russia-China ties amid ‘unpredictable’ worldlist 3 of 3Erdogan: The Making of Modern Turkiyeend of list“With the support of [US President Donald] Trump, we contributed to a ceasefire. But despite this so-called ceasefire, more than 1,300 civilians have been murdered in Gaza,” he said.Although Hamas and other Palestinian groups have accepted the second phase of the October ceasefire framework agreement, he said “Israel is not putting an end to its actions in Gaza and the West Bank is going through the most challenging time as the illegal Israeli settlers occupy the region”.Erdogan described Gaza as “the most inhumane, most shameful concentration camp of our time”.“We face a genocidal mindset that can never get enough of killing. No one with humanity, mercy or conscience can turn a blind eye,” he added.‘Absolutely right’Salman Shaikh, a former UN official who has spent time in Gaza and the founder of The Shaikh Group, said “Erdogan is absolutely right”. He told Al Jazeera that the situation in the conclave was indeed “very, very dire”, adding that the comments made by the Turkish president during his UNGA address were significant.“What was significant in Erdogan’s speech was [this idea] that we can’t let what is happening in Gaza and the occupied West Bank become a normalised situation,” said Shaikh, adding that Turkiye is an “indispensable regional and international actor spanning many geographies and organisations”. Erdogan also slammed the UN, saying it has failed to fulfil its obligations to establish peace and stability in conflict zones.“Eighty-one years ago, the United Nations was formed to preserve global peace and stability, but unfortunately, the UN has failed to fulfil its duty,” he said.Erdogan maintained that the UN has been forced into “dysfunction” and was “bleeding out” in Palestine, Lebanon and Sudan.Absence of AbbasErdogan also addressed the absence of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the UN meeting of world leaders after the US denied the Palestinian leader a visa to enter the country – the second time in two years.“Let it be known that although President Abbas is unable to be with us here in person, we will, as we did last year, continue to be the voice of a free and sovereign state of Palestine,” Erdogan said.The Turkish president also addressed Russia’s war on Ukraine, saying the time had come to bring the conflict to an end.“Our sincere hope is to end the Ukraine-Russia war by keeping Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty intact,” he said.