Not only children but also UN system is dying in Gaza: Erdoğan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, during his speech at the 79th United Nations General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, slammed the UN for inaction on Gaza, which he said has turned into “the world’s largest children’s and women’s cemetery,” Agence France-Presse reported.

“Not only children but also the UN system is dying in Gaza,” Erdoğan told the UN General Assembly. “The truth, the values that the West claims to defend are dying. … I ask openly: Hey human rights organizations, aren’t those in Gaza and the West Bank human beings?”

Erdoğan also stressed the urgency of recognizing Palestinian statehood and condemned Israel’s military actions, pointing to the death of tens of thousands of civilians, including women and children. He called for an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian aid to be delivered without obstruction to the people of Gaza. Moreover, Erdoğan criticized Western nations for providing unconditional support to Israel, accusing them of complicity in the ongoing violence.

Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza resulted in the death of 1,205 people, mostly civilians, including some hostages killed in captivity, official Israeli figures show.

Militants seized 251 hostages during the attack, 97 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 33 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive in the Gaza Strip has so far killed at least 40,988 people, according to the health ministry in the territory.

The UN human rights office says most of the dead are women and children.

The vast majority of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced at least once during nearly a year of war, according to the United Nations.

As violence escalates between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, concerns are growing over the potential for a broader conflict in the region. Israeli airstrikes have reportedly killed hundreds in Lebanon, including children, and world leaders are urging immediate diplomatic efforts to prevent a full-scale war. US President Joe Biden emphasized the need for a peaceful resolution, while UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that Lebanon is “on the brink.”