Leaders at UNGA gravely concerned with Middle East violence, slam Israel for 'genocide'

CONDEMNATION

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Türkiye condemned Israel for "disregarding basic human rights, trampling on international law at every opportunity, practicing ethnic cleansing, a clear genocide against a nation and a people, and occupying their lands step by step."

He underscored the imperative for the international community to develop a protection mechanism for Palestinian civilians, reiterating that "we have no animosity or hostility towards the people of Israel. We oppose antisemitism in the same way we oppose the targeting of Muslims just because of their faith."

Indeed, said the president, Gaza has become "the world's largest cemetery for women and children" at a time when truth itself "is dying" and "the hopes of humanity to live in a more just world are dying one by one." However, he insisted that "we will not hold back from defending the family, the human being and the creation in solidarity with other member states."

King Abdullah II of Jordan told the General Debate that "now is the time to ensure the protection of the Palestinian people. It is the moral duty of the international community to establish a protection mechanism for them across the occupied territories."

"Impunity gathers force. Left unchecked, it gains momentum," he said, noting that the world is watching Gaza, "and history will watch us by the courage we show."

The Jordanian leader said that nearly a year into the war, the world has failed politically, "but our humanity must not fail the people of Gaza any longer."

Meanwhile, both leaders insisted that the world body is far from delivering its obligations in regard of containing the violence in the Middle East.

With innocent civilians and aid workers with the UN Palestine refugee agency, UNRWA, suffering months of bombardment in Gaza, "the UN is under attack, literally and figuratively," said the king.

"The United Nations has failed to fulfill its founding mission and has gradually become a dysfunctional structure," Erdogan said, pointing to the massacre in Gaza, where more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the continuous Israeli attacks for almost one year.