Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told the COP31 Leaders’ Summit in Antalya on Wednesday that what is taking place in Gaza is not only a genocide but also an ecocide, pointing to the destruction of the land itself.
Erdoğan said: “What is taking place in Gaza is not only a genocide, but it is also an ecocide. Centuries-old olive trees have been cut down in Gaza. Trees have been cut down, the soil and water have been polluted in Gaza, and cities in Gaza have been turned into enormous piles of rubble.”
Erdoğan was opening the two-day leaders’ summit at the COP31 climate conference, which Türkiye is hosting in Antalya with leaders from 95 countries. He spoke in Turkish; the audio is the summit’s English simultaneous interpretation.
Video: COP31 Türkiye
