‘Türkiye stands with brotherly Lebanese people,' says President Erdogan amid Israel's invasion plan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called on all regional countries to stand with Lebanon against Israel's invasion plan.

In an address to the parliamentary group of his Justice and Development (AK) Party in the capital Ankara, Erdogan said: “Israel, which has devastated Gaza, is now setting its sights on Lebanon. We see that western powers are supporting Israel behind the scenes.”

“Türkiye stands with brotherly Lebanese people and state and I invite other countries in the region to stand in solidarity with Lebanon as well,” said Erdogan.

"Netanyahu's plans to spread the war across the region will lead to a major catastrophe,” he warned, adding: “Islamic world and Middle Eastern countries should be the first to react to these bloody plans."

“It is extremely dire, pathetic that states, which talk about freedom, human rights, and justice, are held captive by a madman like Netanyahu,” the president added.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.

Nearly 37,700 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and more than 86,200 others injured, according to local health authorities.

More than eight months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.