"All Israelis staying in Turkey must leave as soon as possible," the NSC said in a late-night announcement on Oct. 17. Aside from the warning to leave the country, it also raised the travel advisory level alert for Turkey to four – the highest alert – and Morocco to two for the safety of Israeli tourists.
The hospital strike, which happened amid escalating tensions between Israel and the Palestinians, has led to a surge of protests and condemnation across the region. Both sides have accused each other of being responsible for the attack. Nevertheless, the situation has become dangerous – especially for Israeli citizens in Turkey.
Thousands of people in Turkey joined protests in Istanbul and the capital Ankara to condemn the attack and show solidarity with the Palestinians. Additionally, five protesters were detained for their attempt to breach security and enter the Israeli consulate in Istanbul.
Furthermore, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – a vocal and steadfast supporter of the Palestinians – unequivocally condemned the hospital strike. Erdogan even accused Israel of targeting a facility that was providing shelter to women, children and innocent civilians. As a response, he called on the international community to intervene and halt the unfolding tragedy in Gaza. (Related: Turkish president calls for Muslim world to UNITE against Israel.)
Erdogan: Indiscriminate attacks in the Gaza Strip would result in "a spiral of violence"
The hospital attack in the Gaza Strip has now deepened the longstanding conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians – which has been ongoing for roughly seven decades. More than a week before the Al-Ahli hospital bombing, Erdogan already warned Israeli President Isaac Herzog in an Oct. 9 phone call that indiscriminate attacks in the Gaza Strip would result in "a spiral of violence."
"Any action that inflicts collective and indiscriminate harm on the people of Gaza will only exacerbate suffering and further perpetuate the cycle of violence in the region," the Turkish president warned.
Erdogan stressed the importance of acting sensibly and urgently to restore peace, even stressing the existence of a moral and ethical code governing the Israel-Palestine conflict that both sides are obliged to follow. He called on Israel to cease its airstrikes on Palestinians, and for Palestinians to refrain from harassing civilians in Israel.
"As we always say, 'There are no losers in a just peace,'" Erdogan reiterated. "The destruction of Gaza through air and ground assaults, the targeting of mosques and the tragic loss of innocent lives, including children, women and the elderly, is simply unacceptable."
Moreover, he pointed out that the conflict would not end if Israel is "constantly harassing the Palestinian people, disregarding the safety of their lives and property, seizing their homes and lands, destroying their infrastructure and preventing their development."
Despite all of the warnings, both sides still launched attacks against each other – resulting in the "spiral of violence" Erdogan had been predicting.
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