Turkey Calls for Islamic Alliance Against Israel
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan recently called for the creation of a coalition of Islamic countries to fight what he described as “the growing threat of expansionism” from Israel. He claimed the Jewish state, after “occupying” Lebanon and Syria, “will set its sights on our [Islamic] lands between the Tigris and the Euphrates.” Erdoğan falsely accused Israeli officials of expressing this desire openly “with every map they pose in front of” and declared, “The only step that will stop Israeli arrogance, Israeli banditry, and Israeli state terrorism is the alliance of Islamic countries.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz called Erdoğan’s remarks “a dangerous lie and incitement” and accused him of “working for years alongside Iran to undermine moderate Arab regimes in the Middle East.” Katz added that Erdoğan “continues to throw the Turkish people into the fire of hatred and violence for the sake of his Hamas friends.”
Since becoming Turkey’s president in 2014, Erdoğan has frequently criticized the Jewish state; but he markedly ramped up the anti-Israel rhetoric after the war in Gaza began in October 2023, when Hamas terrorists murdered 1,200 Israelis and took more than 250 hostages. Erdoğan has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and repeatedly compares Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler. He recently called Israel a “Zionist terrorist organization” and warned Israel that its “Promised Land delusion” would end in failure.
Over the years, Erdoğan has been a strong defender of the Iran-backed Hamas; and his hosting and harboring of its leaders has long bred contention between Israel and Turkey. He repeatedly characterizes Hamas as a “resistance movement” and recently claimed, “Hamas is defending not only Gaza but also Islamic lands and Turkey.”
Analysts question the possibility of an Islamic alliance because Muslim countries are divided by competing interests and policies. Egypt and Jordan, for instance, have peace treaties with Israel; and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco normalized diplomatic relations with Israel when they signed the Abraham Accords.
“Erdoğan’s call for Islamic countries to form an alliance to isolate Israel is likely to fail and fail spectacularly,” said Middle East expert Tyler Stapleton. “Israel is continuing to work productively with its neighbors and other nations that have joined the Abraham Accords. Many countries are seeing the economic and diplomatic benefits of normalizing relations with Israel and improving relations with the United States.”
Others warn that Erdoğan’s threats should not be taken lightly. Yoni Ben Menachem, a veteran diplomatic commentator for Israel Radio and Television, noted, “Jerusalem officials are increasingly alarmed by Erdoğan’s rhetoric, fearing that he is laying the groundwork for war against Israel while expanding his calls for a broader Muslim alliance to isolate and confront the Jewish state.”
Gallia Lindenstrauss, an analyst at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, attributed the escalating rhetoric partly to the growing influence of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, previously head of Turkish intelligence, who is known for his pro-Iranian stance. She counseled that Israel must involve allies, first and foremost the United States, to respond to the Turkish threat. “No western player has an interest in seeing Turkey, which is a member of NATO, militarily confront Israel,” she said. “Strenuous diplomatic activity is required, mainly behind the scenes, to calm the tensions between the parties. Israel is dealing with enough fronts, so it should make every effort to contain the provocative statements on the part of Ankara as far as possible.”
