Thousands of people gathered this Sunday, October 15 in Turkey and Morocco in support of the Palestinians, at a time when the Israeli army is massing its troops in preparation for a ground offensive in the bombed north of the Gaza Strip.
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WhileIsrael continues its bombings on the Gaza Strip following the attack launched on October 7 by Hamas, several regional actors are trying to play the mediators. This is the case of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who strives to maintain a certain balance in his speeches despite his long-standing attachment to the Palestinian cause. An attachment shared by a large part of Turkish society since this Sunday, thousands of people gathered in Istanbul for a large meeting in support of the Palestinians. The position of the Turkish president was not unanimous, reports our correspondent in Istanbul, Anne Andlauer.
Suphan, 19, came with a Turkish flag, a Palestinian flag, and all her classmates from the Koran reading class. She says she is depressed after watching the images from Gaza, but she hopes that the Turkish president’s diplomatic efforts will ultimately pay off: “ Recep Tayyip Erdogan does what he can to the best of his ability… Morally, materially, he tries to help the Palestinians. Insh’Allah, both parties will find an agreement. »
Emir is a member of the Islamist Saadet party, which belongs to the opposition. The position of the Turkish president does not satisfy him: “ Instead of arguing with Israel, he would do better to be completely on the side of the Palestinian people, to claim that Israel is a terrorist state! Mediation is useless. Israel is a country that only understands force. »
“ Our leaders should also revolt »
Ummu Gulsum, dressed and veiled in black, is also pessimistic. And disappointed by the lack of mobilization in the streets of Turkish society for the Palestinian cause: “ I call on my compatriots to revolt. We are a Muslim country and it is our Muslim brothers who are dying there. Gaza, Jerusalem… it doesn’t just concern Palestinians, it concerns all Muslims. Our leaders too should revolt, and sever ties with Israel. »
Two other large-scale demonstrations had already taken place on Friday and Saturday on the historic Istanbul peninsula to denounce Israel’s policy. Saturday October 14, thousands of pro-Palestinians, including one of President Erdogan’s sons and one of his sons-in-law, marched from the approaches to the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul to the Hagia Sophia mosque.
If Israel launches a ground offensive in Gaza, the Turkish president will have great difficulty maintaining the semblance of balance that is his for the moment.
“ Unconditional support for resistance to occupation »
In Rabat also, tens of thousands of demonstrators marched this Sunday in solidarity with the Palestinians. The two main boulevards of the city center were crowded, over a kilometer long, with crowds in tight ranks, who marched, at the call of two coalitions bringing together Islamist movements on the one hand, and the other from the left-wing parties.
“ Unconditional support for resistance to occupation “, ” the people want to liberate Palestine “, chanted the demonstrators. Some carried huge Palestinian flags at arm’s length and called for support ” Gaza and its sacrifice “. The demonstration, also punctuated by prayers against “ tyranny and oppression » and Palestinian songs, is the largest of its kind since the normalization between Morocco and Israel at the end of 2020 under American sponsorship.
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(And with AFP)