Turkey on Friday accused Prime Minister Netanyahu‘s government of threatening the stability of the entire Middle East after Israel‘s “provocative” and “illegal” early morning attack on Iran’s nuclear and military facilities, after which Tehran has vowed “revenge”.
“Israel has carried out another of its illegal and provocative actions by attacking Iran,” Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz was quoted as saying by Turkish media. “This attack, which takes place while international pressure against the genocidal policies in Gaza is increasing, while nuclear negotiations with Iran continue, is against diplomacy and human values,” said Yılmaz, who called for a more severe response against Israel’s policies in the region by the international community and international bodies.
Turkey’s foreign ministry also issued a strong statement condemning “in the strongest terms” the Israeli attacks on Iran: “The timing of the strikes, which occurred during intensified negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program, clearly indicates that the Netanyahu government is unwilling to resolve any issue through diplomatic means and does not hesitate to risk regional stability and global peace for its own interests“, said the text sent from Ankara, which reiterated that “we do not want to see any more bloodshed and destruction in the Middle East“.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan‘s AKP party spokesman Ömer Çelik, meanwhile, also condemned the Israeli operation and reiterated that the action carried out by Israel early this morning “has no legitimacy or justification“, calling it a “barbaric and savage aggression” by Israel that “ignites the entire region” with its “illegal” attacks.
More than 100 targets hit in ‘very successful’ operation
Israel carried out a series of strikes early this morning against some 100 targets on Iranian territory, including military bases and installations as well as facilities related to Iran’s nuclear programme and uranium enrichment, killing the head of Iran’s armed forces, Mohammad Bagheri, and the leader of the powerful Revolutionary Guard, Hossein Salami, among other senior military officers; Iranian sources also acknowledged the deaths of at least half a dozen senior scientists related to the nuclear programme and numerous civilians, including women and children.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the operation “a turning point in Israel’s history” and justified the strikes on “the heart of Iran’s nuclear enrichment programme” as aimed at ending the Shiite regime’s atomic ambitions and reducing its long-range ballistic capabilities, after Israeli intelligence said Iran was close to reaching a “point of no return” that would allow it to develop nuclear weapons. “The strikes will continue as many days as necessary,” Netanyahu said, describing the operation as “very successful“.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that Tehran would give a “bitter and painful” response to the attacks by Israel, initially launching a wave of 100 drones into Israeli territory that were intercepted by Israel’s air defences.
US President Donald Trump, who only hours earlier had warned that an Israeli attack on Iran was “very likely”, confirmed that he had been informed of the operation – involving some 200 Israeli fighter jets – but he insisted that “Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb“. While Trump denied any US involvement in the attack, Iran has threatened to attack US interests and facilities in the Middle East in retaliation.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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