ANKARA: Turkey has called for an emergency OIC meeting, saying Ankara wants the meeting of the 57-member-state body to be held on Friday, spokesman Bekir Bozdag said.
Turkey has been one of the most vocal critics of the US move and the violence in Gaza, with the government declaring three days of mourning for those killed.
President Tayyip Erdogan described the actions of the Israeli forces as a “genocide” and Israel as a “terrorist state.”
“No matter from what side, whether from the United States or Israel, I curse this humanitarian plight, this genocide,” he said.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the United States was an accomplice in a crime against humanity.
“Unfortunately, the US has arrogantly stood by the Israeli administration which kills civilians and has partnered in this crime against humanity,” he told reporters in Ankara.
“This provocation will only worsen the problems in the region and cause a deeper mark in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship, and will make peace in the region more difficult,” Yildirim added.
He said US President Donald Trump was attempting to distract attention from domestic problems by moving the embassy, “trying to hide the fire inside by setting fires outside.”
In Istanbul around 2,000 people marched down the main Istiklal Street, carrying banners saying “Jerusalem belongs to Muslims” and “Murderer Israel, get out of Palestine.”
Erdogan promised to hold a rally in support of Palestinians in Istanbul on Friday following the OIC summit.
Earlier on Monday, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said the US decision to move its embassy to Jerusalem had encouraged Israeli forces to kill dozens of Palestinian protesters.
“We curse the massacre carried out by Israeli security forces, encouraged by this step, on the Palestinians participating in peaceful demonstrations,” its statement said.
Turkey calls meeting of Islamic body after Palestinians killed in Gaza
Turkey calls meeting of Islamic body after Palestinians killed in Gaza
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UN force in Lebanon says peacekeeper wounded by Israeli fire
- UNIFIL reiterated its call to the Israeli army to “cease aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers working for peace and stability along the Blue Line”
BEIRUT, Lebanon: The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said an Israeli attack near their position in the country’s south wounded a peacekeeper on Friday, reiterating a call for Israel to “cease aggressive behavior.”
It is the latest incident reported by the peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, where UNIFIL acts as a buffer between Israel and Lebanon and has been working with Lebanon’s army to support a year-old truce between Israel and militant group Hezbollah.
“This morning, heavy machine gunfire from Israel Defense Forces (IDF) positions south of the Blue Line impacted close to a UNIFIL patrol inspecting a roadblock in the village of Bastarra. The gunfire followed a grenade explosion nearby,” UNIFIL said in a statement.
The force added that “the sound of the gunfire and the explosion left one peacekeeper slightly injured with ear concussion.”
Also on Friday, UNIFIL said “another patrol carrying out a routine operational task also reported machine gunfire from the Israeli side in immediate proximity to their position” in Kfarshuba, south Lebanon.
The peacekeeping force said it had informed the Israel army of its activities in these areas.
Earlier this month, UNIFIL said Israeli forces fired on its peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.
Last month it said Israeli soldiers shot at its troops in the south, while Israel’s military said it mistook blue helmets for “suspects” and fired warning shots.
In October, UNIFIL said one of its members was wounded by an Israeli grenade dropped near a UN position in the country’s south, the third incident of its kind in just over a month.
“Attacks on or near peacekeepers are serious violations of Security Council resolution 1701,” the peacekeeping force added, referring to the 2006 resolution that formed the basis of the November 2024 truce.
UNIFIL reiterated its call to the Israeli army to “cease aggressive behavior and attacks on or near peacekeepers working for peace and stability along the Blue Line.”
Israel carries out regular attacks on Lebanon despite the truce, usually saying it is targeting sites and operatives belonging to Hezbollah, which it accuses of rearming.
It has also kept troops in five south Lebanon areas it deems strategic.
