Ankara, September 27: The Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has lashed out at the global silence on the continuing humanitarian catastrophe in war-battered Gaza Strip.
“People in Gaza still live in tent camps and simply cannot find fresh water. It is against this picture that we must fulfill our humanitarian mission. I wonder what the United Nations or the Security Council could have done,” Erdogan stated during his speech at the UN General Assembly late on Thursday.
The Turkish leader went on to say that Gaza was left to its own destiny after Israel’s deadly attacks on the besieged strip last year. “It is our humanitarian and ethical responsibility to put an end to this tragedy and establish a lasting atmosphere of peace. Turkey has always supported and will continue to support the Palestinian people,” he said.
Gazans are still struggling to resume ordinary life months after Israel’s ‘Operation Cast Lead’ resulted in the death of over 1,500 Palestinians and the injury of about 5,450 people in the impoverished sliver.
With USD 1.6 billion damage to Gaza’s economy during three weeks of relentless Israeli bombardment in January, Palestinians in the Strip are striving hard to survive under a siege preventing any import or export. This is while according to statistics, the unemployment rate stands at 44 percent in the war-wreaked enclave.
—–Agencies