Erdogan and Netanyahu trade jabs after Turkish president's UN speech
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu went head-to-head after the Turkish leader took on Israel in his speech at the United Nations General Assembly.
Speaking at the General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, Erdogan criticised the Israeli occupation of Palestine, taking a leaf from Netanyahu's 2012 playbook at the UN by holding up images to illustrate his point.
“Today, the Palestinian territories under Israeli occupation have become one of the places on earth where injustice prevails the most," Erdogan said, calling for an equal two-state solution.
One of the images Erdogan used in his speech was a famous series of time-lapsed maps showing the wittling down of Palestinian-controlled land since Israel's founding in 1948.
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Netanyahu did not attend the UN, as he continued working at home, trying to put together a ruling alliance for his premiership after another inconclusive election.
Still, he made his voice heard.
Speaking directly to the camera in a video posted to Twitter, Netanyahu addressed Erdogan personally: "He who doesn't stop lying about Israel, slaughters the Kurds in his own country, and denies the terrible slaughter of the Armenian people – shouldn't preach to Israel. Erdogan, stop lying," Netanyahu said.
Not long after, Turkey's communication director Fahrettin Altun shot back, saying Netanyahu was "neck-deep in corruption charges" and accusing the Israeli premier of attempting to use Erdogan's UN speech as a way to "distract attention from his domestic troubles".
"Wouldn’t your time be better spent preparing for your court hearing – instead of attacking a leader who can actually win an election," Altun said on Twitter, retweeting Netanyahu's video.
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin is expected to announce on Wednesday who will be tasked with forming a coalition government . He will likely choose between Blue and White’s Benny Gantz and the Likud's Netanyahu. Both are short of a 61-seat majority.
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