Israel hits back at Turkish minister’s dream to govern Jerusalem

Israel’s response was inevitable to what resembled a delusional statement by Turkey’s Interior Minister, Mustafa Çiftçi. Speaking publicly on Saturday, June 6, he said that he prays to become governor of Jerusalem, “when” it passes to Turkey, even for just one day. Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, responded with a post. He emphasized that Jerusalem will be Israel’s capital forever and accused Çiftçi and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of destroying the work of Kemal Atatürk, who wanted to make Turkey a modern state, and returning it “to the era of darkness and backwardness.” This particular confrontation is part of the overall tension between the two states, as Recep Tayyip Erdogan has frequently criticized Benjamin Netanyahu – and vice versa.

Read: New record of national patriotism from Turkish Interior Minister: “I believe God will show us the days when Jerusalem will be ours again”

Israel Katz’s response

Israel Katz stated: “To the Turkish minister who threatens and dreams of ruling Jerusalem: Jerusalem is not Constantinople and the State of Israel is not the crumbling Crusader Empire, but a strong and determined state that has proven its ability to defend itself against every threat. Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish People for 3,000 years and will continue to be the capital of Israel forever, while the Ottoman Empire that you and Erdogan dream of collapsed and will never return. It’s a shame you learned nothing from Atatürk’s legacy, who worked to transform Turkey into a modern state, and you are working to return Turkey to the era of darkness and backwardness.”

What Çiftçi had said

A statement, therefore, that could belong to… a deep far-right supporter and certainly not to a minister of the Erdogan government in Turkey was made by Mustafa Çiftçi. The country’s Interior Minister expressed his desire to become “governor of Jerusalem.” He even claimed that Jerusalem could again come under Turkish sovereignty, as during the Ottoman period. Çiftçi stated: “As we saw the liberation of Damascus, Aleppo and Karabakh, God willing we will see one day the liberation of Jerusalem.” Then he expressed his dream, for which he prays: “My God, grant me one day to become governor of Jerusalem, even for just one day.” At the same time, he expressed his belief that Jerusalem could once again come under Turkish control, declaring: “I believe God will show us these days. As in the past, these places will become ours again, they will again be under our sovereignty and control, because we have a president of global scope like Recep Tayyip Erdogan.”