Israeli takeover of Gaza would open the door for other occupations: Erdogan

The Israeli takeover of Palestine's Gaza would open the door for other occupations, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned following an official visit to Iraq.

"Opening Gaza to the settlement of Israeli thieving terrorists will only make Israel more aggressive, more reckless. This is something we cannot allow," he added, speaking to reporters on Tuesday upon his return.

The Turkish president assured that they will continue diplomatic efforts and do everything within the country's power, and beyond, to find a solution for the people of Gaza saying: "This is on top of our agenda."

In response to these "spoiled and murderous" behaviours of Tel Aviv, we will work to engage with the United Nations Secretary-General's Office and take joint steps with them, he added.

Gaza was a top agenda item at Erdogan's visit to Iraq, during which he met with Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid and Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani.

The leaders evaluated their countries' accelerated bilateral relations and assessed further cooperation opportunities, particularly in counter-terrorism, trade, transportation, energy, and the impact of climate change.

Fight against terrorism

During his visit, Erdogan expressed Türkiye's satisfaction with Iraq declaring the terrorist organisation PKK a banned organisation.

"We once again emphasised our expectation that the PKK should be officially declared a terrorist organisation and its presence in Iraq should be terminated," Erdogan told reporters on Tuesday.

"The PKK/PYD/YPG terrorist organisation is a threat to the stability, development and peace of Iraq. It is also in Iraq's interest to eliminate this threat. I believe that they see this reality and will now put forward the will to eliminate this problem," he added.

In Baghdad, Erdogan also met with Turkmen leaders and expressed Türkiye's support for them.

The president also visited Erbil, where he held talks with leaders of the Kurdish Regional Government.

"We discussed the steps we can take against the PKK threat. We remain committed to furthering our cooperation with the Kurdish Regional Government of Iraq," he said.

Anniversary of 1915 events

Regarding a recent statement by Armenian President Nikol Pashinyan, during which he refrained from referring to the 1915 incidents as a genocide, Erdogan said: "A new order is now being established in the region."

"It is always better to act according to the realities of the times than with fabricated historical stories that have no connection with reality," he added.

The president expressed hope that Armenia will choose to embark on new beginnings and "create a new road map on a realistic ground," while noting that the door of opportunity would not stay open forever.

Türkiye objects to presenting the 1915 events as “genocide,” describing them a tragedy in which both Turks and Armenians suffered casualties.

Ankara has repeatedly proposed the creation of a joint commission of historians from Türkiye and Armenia under the supervision of international experts to examine the issue.