‘Bombs fired at sleeping Jews’ – Turkey’s Opposition Leader condemns Hamas for October 7th massacres.
By World Israel News Staff
A prominent Turkish lawmaker took aim at the Hamas terror organization Saturday, condemning the group for its invasion of southwestern Israel on October 7th.
In a television interview Saturday, Turkish Opposition Leader Özgür Özel said Hamas must be recognized as a terrorist organization.
“Hamas rains bombs on innocent people in the middle of the night, with balloons, drones, and I don’t know what else,” Özel said.
“You must see that this issue started there. What Hamas did was an act of terror. Hamas fired bombs at sleeping Jews in the middle of the night.”
The 49-year-old pharmacist and chairman of the center-left Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi (CHP), or Republican People’s Party, replaced the former party chief, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, last November, five months after Kılıçdaroğlu failed to unseat incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
This is not the first time Özel has publicly criticized the Hamas terror organization.
On June 16th, Özel reiterated his opposition to Hamas after he was confronted by an incensed constituent following the Eid al-Adha prayer in his hometown in western Turkey.
“You criticize Israel, but consider Hamas a terrorist organization,” the man said.
Özel, who has also criticized Israel in the past, touted his pro-Palestinian bona fides, noting his staunch support for Palestinian statehood.
“Listen to me on Eid morning. I wrote a letter to 119 countries in the world. Do you know what I said, ‘Recognize Palestine.’ If Spain recognized Palestine, it was because of my letter.”
“If one side kills the other, they are wrong. I travel all over the world for Palestine to be recognized and free. The President thanked me, said ‘You are fighting for Palestine’. So on the morning of Eid, know what you are talking about, okay?”
Just hours after the October 7th invasion of Israel, Özel slammed Israeli counterattacks in the Gaza Strip.
“I condemn Israel’s attacks on Gaza, which caused the death of 198 Palestinians,” Özel tweeted.
“It is our country’s duty to lead the international community to bring peace to Palestine and the Middle East, to end the escalating tension, and to prevent any further loss of life.”