Türkiye condemns Israeli Foreign Minister Katz's claims about Haniyeh's wealth

Turkey has strongly rejected the statements made by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and accused him of spreading defamatory and misleading information.

What happened: At the heart of the controversy are Katz's social media posts in which he claims that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan blocked the transfer of a $3 billion fortune allegedly belonging to martyr and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

Türkiye condemns Israeli disinformation

• In response Directorate of Presidential Communications of Türkiye The directorate firmly denied the allegations. “These claims are completely false,” it said. “Ismail Haniyeh had no savings in Turkish banks and such an issue was not raised during the meeting between President Erdoğan and Haniyeh's sons Abdussalam and Hammam.”
• The Foreign Ministry joined in this rejection, condemning Katz's comments as “slander intended to serve disinformation purposes.” The ministry added: “These lies, which aim to divert attention from the genocide in Gaza, will not affect our support for the Palestinian people.”

Israel wants to justify “genocide” in Gaza

Turkey accuses Israel of using disinformation to justify its ongoing military offensive in the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians.

These baseless accusations are a blatant attempt to divert attention from the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. We will not be deterred from our support for the Palestinian cause.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

What happened: Israel continues its brutal offensive against Gaza, ignoring a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire. Large parts of the territory lie in ruins. For more than ten months of conflict, Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants have suffered severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine due to the Israeli blockade.

Katz's statements are part of Israel's diversionary strategy

• President Erdogan has repeatedly criticized Israel's actions and accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of war crimes. “Katz's provocative statements are part of Israel's broader strategy to distract from its crimes in the Gaza Strip,” Erdogan said in a recent speech.

We stand with the Palestinian people and no slander or lie will change that.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan

• “Israel's disinformation campaigns aim to manipulate global opinion, but the world must not lose sight of the real problem – the ongoing genocide in Gaza,” said a Turkish official familiar with the situation.

Tense relations between Turkey and Israel

The Turkish government's reaction comes against the backdrop of increasing tensions between Ankara and Tel Aviv.

• Relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated significantly since the conflict began. Ankara has severed trade relations and Erdogan is engaged in a war of words with Netanyahu.

• Israel is also accused of genocide before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague; Turkey is a party in the proceedings against Israel there.