Erdoğan Says Gaza Has Suffered ‘Genocide and Ecocide’ at COP31, Accuses Israel of Blocking Shelters

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan used the opening of the COP31 climate summit in Antalya on Wednesday to condemn the destruction of Gaza’s environment and accuse Israel of preventing Turkey from delivering emergency shelters to Palestinians facing winter floods. ⠀ “The heavy price of armed conflicts is paid not only by people but also by nature,” Erdoğan told world leaders. “Not only a genocide but also an ecocide has taken place in Gaza,” he said, repeating an accusation he made at the United Nations General Assembly. ⠀ He described centuries-old olive trees being cut down, soil and water polluted and entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble. His remarks came as he planted an olive sapling at the summit alongside UN Secretary-General António Guterres. ⠀ Erdoğan said heavy rain and flooding, combined with Gaza’s destroyed infrastructure, had submerged tens of thousands of tents and temporary shelters. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, including children shivering in the cold and some without their parents, were struggling to survive, he said. ⠀ “Are these people not human beings?” Erdoğan asked. “We want to send containers, but we are not being allowed to.” He urged Israel to allow humanitarian assistance into Gaza and end the restrictions, warning that those who witnessed the suffering could not escape responsibility. ⠀ Turning back to the summit’s environmental message, Erdoğan said humanity had only one roof—the sky—and one garden—the Earth. He warned that excessive consumption was contributing to a profound existential crisis and called for a cleaner, greener and fairer world for future generations.