Turkiye brands Netanyahu ‘Hitler of our times’ as flotilla case sparks sharp war of words
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks after a cabinet meeting in Ankara, Turkey on March 9, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS
Turkiye's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has responded to the Israeli Prime Minister's post on X, calling him the 'Hitler of our times'.
This exchange has stemmed as a result of Turkiye's levying charges against Israel's military and political leadership for the naval interception of the October 2025 “Sumud” Gaza flotilla, seeking up to 4,596 years in prison as punishment, as per Turkish media.
Regarding the Social Media Post by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu https://t.co/CMg9hJzc1h pic.twitter.com/LOLDqOZpH3
The statement refers to the arrest warrant sent out by the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in November 2024 for 'war crimes and crimes against humanity'.
The foreign ministry said, "Netanyahu’s current objective is to undermine ongoing peace negotiations and continue his expansionist policies in the region. Failing this, he risks being tried in his own country and is likely to be sentenced to imprisonment."
"The fact that our President has been targeted by Israeli officials with baseless, brazen, and false allegations is a result of the discomfort caused by the truths we have consistently voiced on every platform," Turkish MFA said.
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This was in response to Netanyahu and the Israeli defence minister's lashing out at Turkiye's indictment. According to Anadolu Agency, Istanbul's Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office prepared an indictment against 35 suspects, including Netanyahu, over an armed intervention against the Global Sumud Flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza last year.
The indictment seeks aggravated life sentences as well as prison terms ranging from 1,102 years and 9 months to 4,596 years for each suspect on charges, including “crimes against humanity,” “genocide,” “deprivation of liberty,” “torture,” “damage to property,” “qualified looting,” and “obstructing, hijacking or detaining transportation vehicles.”
Netanyahu responded by saying that Israel would 'continue to fight against Iran's terrorist regime and its proxies, in contrast to Erdogan who aids them and even slaughters his Kurdish citizens.'
ישראל תחת הנהגתי תמשיך להילחם במשטר הטרור של איראן ובשלוחותיו, בניגוד לארדואן שמסייע להם ואף טובח באזרחיו הכורדים.
Israel Defence Minister Katz called Erdogan a 'paper tiger' at his 'failure' to 'respond to the missiles fired from Iran onto Turkish soil, is now resorting to antisemitism and announcing sham trials in Turkiye against Israel's political and military leadership.'
Türkiye Cumhurbaşkanı @RTErdogan, İran’dan Türkiye topraklarına atılan füzelere tepki vermeyerek bir kâğıttan kaplan olduğunu ortaya koyduktan sonra, antisemitizme başvuruyor ve Türkiye’de İsrail’in siyasi ve askeri liderliğine karşı göstermelik yargılamalar ilan ediyor.
Ne büyük…According to the indictment, activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla were en route to Gaza via sea vessels to deliver humanitarian aid when Israeli naval forces carried out an attack in international waters.
It said that following the attack, an ex officio investigation was launched by the prosecutor’s office within the framework of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Article 15 of Turkiye’s Criminal Procedure Code, and Articles 12 and 13 of the Turkish Penal Code regarding jurisdiction.
In September 2025, Israeli forces stopped the Global Sumud Flotilla in what organisers described as an unlawful intervention, boarded it, detained volunteers, and took them to Israel.
Amongst the detained were climate activist Greta Thunberg, European Parliament member Rima Hassan, and Al Jazeera journalist Oman Faiad, amongst other activists of varying nationalities.