Erdogan Threatens Israel – Israel Responds to Erdogan with Threats

In a statement on Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey could enter Israel “just as we entered Karabakh and Libya.”

Turkish President's statement provokes sharp reaction in Israel

“Erdogan is following in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein” – Israeli Foreign Minister on the Turkish President's threats to the Jewish state.

Please contact us. רק שיזכור מה קרה שם ואיך זה הסתיים.@RTErdogan pic.twitter.com/6GykLtLoh4

— ישראל כ”ץ Israel Katz (@Israel_katz) July 28, 2024

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened Israel with the introduction of troops. “We will do the same in Israel as we did in Karabakh and Libya,” he said at a party meeting on July 28. He is referring to the armed conflicts in Nagorno-Karabakh and Libya, in which Turkish troops have taken part.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz wrote on the social network X: “Erdogan is following in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein and threatening to attack Israel. He should remember what happened there and how it ended.”

Journalist Eren Guvercin, an expert on Turkey, wrote: “When Erdogan speaks without a teleprompter, the real Erdogan is revealed. Just as Putin has made no secret of his goals for years, Erdogan makes no secret of his goals. As with Putin, Europe is not listening and is making the same mistake.”

Israeli analysts on Erdogan's threats

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s threat that Turkey, while acting militarily in Karabakh and Libya, “will do the same to Israel” is a worrying escalation. While the chances of this threat being realized seem slim, it is important to remember that Turkey has a drone base in northern Cyprus, as well as a significant navy with diverse capabilities.

Erdogan’s statement can be explained by three main factors. First, there is strong domestic pressure within Turkey to tighten measures against Israel, pressure that has already borne fruit when Turkey announced a full economic embargo on Israel in early May. Second, there is growing frustration in Turkey with the continuation of the war in Gaza and the possibility of a full-scale war between Israel and Lebanon, as well as the fact that Turkey has little influence on the course of events. Finally, since the beginning of the war, Erdogan has even stated that Israel has expansionist intentions beyond what is happening in Gaza and Lebanon and that it is also threatening Turkey, thus giving expression to conspiracy theories that exist among the Turkish public.

Along with all this, one cannot fail to mention the growing influence of Turkish Foreign Minister Han Fidan, who in the past headed the Turkish intelligence organization and was known for his pro-Iranian position. Since the outbreak of the war, Turkey's reaction to what is happening is becoming increasingly similar to the reaction of the Shiite axis.

The rhetorical battles between Israeli decision-makers and Erdogan, and in particular the tweets of Foreign Minister Israel Katz, are fueling the crisis, and there is no sign that they are leading to restraint on the Turkish side. Additional players, especially the United States, need to be involved in the response to the Turkish threat. Western countries have an interest in Turkey, a NATO member, engaging in a military confrontation with Israel.

There has been no serious reaction from Washington to Turkey's decision to impose an economic embargo on Israel, and it is unclear whether, given the amount of events taking place, there is sufficient understanding of the seriousness of the relationship between Turkey and Israel.

To ease tensions between the parties, intense diplomatic activity, mostly behind the scenes, is necessary. In any case, Israel is dealing with enough fronts that it must do its utmost to contain as many provocative statements from Ankara as possible.

Turkey compares Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler

Erdogan's party vice president Omer Celik, responding to statements by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, who posted a photo of Tayyip Erdogan and former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Twitter, compared Katz to Hitler's foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop.

Celik said that he (Ribbentrop) “is not a good example”because he was tried for “planning war crimes, crimes against humanity and committing crimes against peace” hinting that the ICC has opened a case against Netanyahu for genocide against the Palestinian people.

İsrail Dışişleri Bakanı Katz, insanlık değerlerini ve barışı savunan Cumhurbaşkanımıza yönelik kullandığı ifadelerle haddini aştığı gibi tam bir Nazi olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Cumhurbaşkanımıza dönük bu saldırılar, insanlık değerlerine, vicdanına ve haysiyetine düşman olanların… pic.twitter.com/hKssacOOot

— Ömer Çelik (@omerrcelik) July 29, 2024

With his statements about our President, who defends human values ​​and peace, Israeli Foreign Minister Katz has not only gone beyond the pale, but has also shown that he is a complete Nazi. These attacks on our President are attacks by those who are hostile to human values, conscience and dignity. Israeli Foreign Minister Katz seems to be taking Hitler's Foreign Minister Ribbentrop as an example. Ribbentrop, Hitler's Foreign Minister, was tried for “deliberately starting a war, planning war crimes and crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace.” We remind Katz that Ribbentrop is not a good example; sooner or later, the structure with which he jointly committed crimes against humanity will be tried…

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