President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has called on all countries which have regard for international law to recognize Jerusalem as the occupied capital of Palestine.
Erdogan made his remarks on Wednesday during an opening speech at the extraordinary summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Istanbul.
As the rotating president of the OIC Erdogan said US President Donald Trump’s decision on Jerusalem constituted a threat to all humanity and called on him to revoke his step.
Describing Israel as an “occupation and terrorist state” Erdogan said Trump had rewarded it for its “terror acts” against the Palestinians.
“Terrorist [Israeli] soldiers take 10-year-old children into custody and put them behind bars. A 14-year-old kid was blindfolded by around 20 soldiers and clubbed with rifle butts” he said referring to a Palestinian boy who was detained last Thursday during clashes in the West Bank city of Al-Khalil.
Erdogan accused the US of “standing by those who make peace impossible” and “playing into the hands of all fanatics” at a time of an intense fight against terrorism.
The Turkish president hailed all countries which refused to recognize the US move on Jerusalem stressing that “a resolute stance over Jerusalem was confirmed by many leaders he met recently including the Pope”.
“Only Israel which holds Jerusalem under occupation supported the US unlawful decision. We thank all the countries who did not accept this illegitimate decision.”
Erdogan reiterated that Muslim countries would never give up on their demand for an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.
“Peace in our region and in Jerusalem will only be established through the efforts of upright honest and fair people from every nation and faith” he said.
The president expressed hope that all 196 member states of the UN would stand against the US move.
