Yeni Şafak and TVNET Editor-In-Chief İbrahim Karagül explained why Turkey was so persistent in its undertaking to defend the Palestinian cause and Jerusalem prior to a historic rally being held in solidarity with Palestine in Istanbul’s Yenikapı district.
“The reason why we are defending Jerusalem to this extent is the same reason we were defending Anatolia. There were Turkish troops fighting in the Gaza wars. They were defending Jerusalem, they were defending Mecca and Medina. Why? Defending Jerusalem is to defend Mecca and Medina,” Karagül said.
“The same thing that is happening in Jerusalem today will happen tomorrow in Mecca and Medina, and we will be in shock as to how we came to this point,” he added.
The rally was called by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in response to Israeli violence that martyred at least 62 Palestinians, the youngest just 8 months old, on Monday along Gaza's eastern border.
Demonstrators were protesting against the U.S. moving its Israel embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
The embassy move follows U.S. President Donald Trump's decision last December to break with decades of U.S. policy and recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
Karagül stated that the Saudi administration and the UAE paved the way for the U.S. moving its embassy to Jerusalem.
“The events in Jerusalem today are the result of a secret deal that Saudi Arabia and the UAE made with the U.S. and Israel. It will go down in history as one of the most treacherous agreements ever made. A new invasion map is being drawn.”
Karagül also commented on Turkey’s status as a rising regional power.
“Our problem is not external attacks. The Ottoman Empire was a great political power. Once it collapsed, a regional power did not emerge for a century. They attacked us [Turkey], and will continue to do so. Why? Because they will attack you if you say American and British hegemony in the region has come to an end,” Karagül said.
“They are telling us to surrender. We cannot stomach such a thing,” he added.
The rally will be attended by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and global leaders, who are in the city for an emergency Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit, as well as Turkish Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli.
