Turkish tourists to Jewish man in Israel: ‘Jerusalem is ours’

A confrontation involving Turkish tourists at Jerusalem’s Jaffa Gate has reignited concerns over Ankara’s rhetoric.

By World Israel News Staff

A group of Turkish tourists visiting Israel confronted a Jewish Israeli man who was welcoming them to Jerusalem, claiming that the capital is actually Turkish territory — an extreme position promoted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The incident, captured in a video that subsequently went viral on social media, has raised renewed concerns over Erdoğan’s rhetoric toward Israel and Jerusalem and its potential influence on Turkish visitors to the country.

In the clip, several Turkish women visiting Jerusalem are seen confronting a Jewish man at the city’s Jaffa Gate. The women, dressed in black abayas, a traditional garment typically worn by extremely religious Muslims, are heard arguing with the man as he welcomes tourists to the capital.

“This is my home,” one of the women is heard shouting at the man, while sarcastically telling him “you are welcome,” as though she is the one hosting him.

The exchange has drawn attention in Israel amid growing scrutiny of Turkey’s increasingly confrontational rhetoric toward Israel under Erdoğan, whose government has repeatedly criticized Israeli policies and emphasized Turkey’s historical and religious ties to Jerusalem.

Former Israeli Ambassador to Kazakhstan Ran Yishai said the incident demonstrated the need for Israel to reconsider its policy toward Turkish visitors.

“The incident at Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem, which is not the first of its kind in which Turkish tourists walk around Jerusalem with a false sense of ownership inspired by Erdoğan’s conduct, further illustrates the need to implement the recommendation to deny visas to Turkish tourists entering Israel until relations between the two countries are based on an updated framework,” former Israeli Ambassador to Kazakhstan Ran Yishai told Hebrew-language outlet Ynet.

Yishai is now the head of research at the Jerusalem Center for Applied Policy (JCAP), which has been closely monitoring Turkish rhetoric regarding Jerusalem and Israel.

JCAP chairman Haim Silverstein also called for an immediate response to the incident, describing the tourists involved as a potential security concern.

“The Islamist tourists from Turkey are dangerous and incited against Israelis,” Silverstein told Ynet. “This group should be removed immediately from Israeli territory, and the sooner the better.”