Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has slammed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his son for verbally attacking Turkey.
On Saturday Erdogan called on Netanyahu to “twist the ear” of his son, Yair, as punishment for “calling Istanbul Constantinople”, warning that he had “other ways to educate Israel” if Netanyahu or his son continued with their rhetoric.
Erdogan’s remarks came in response to a tweet by Yair in which he said “I will remind him that Istanbul is actually a city called Constantinople! The capital of the Byzantine empire and center of orthodox Christianity for more then [sic] a thousand years before Turkish occupation!”
And I will remind him that Istanbul is actually a city called Constantinople! The capital of the Byzantine empire and center of orthodox Christianity for more then a thousand years before Turkish occupation! https://t.co/LIpPx8xqYX
— Yair Netanyahu (@YairNetanyahu) March 13, 2019
Erdogan has previously described Netanyahu as a “tyrant, who massacres children” after the prime minister slammed an Israeli artist who protested against the rampant racism Palestinians experience at the hands of the Tel Aviv authorities.
“There are 1.6 million Arabs living in Israel,” Erdogan’s office said, adding, “when will Western countries wake up and follow up on this racism or will they be silenced under pressure?”
According to the Times of Israel, Netanyahu hit back and said: “Turkey’s dictator Erdogan attacks Israel’s democracy while Turkish journalists and judges fill his prisons. What a joke!”
Ignoring Israeli police’s attacks on Al-Aqsa Mosque and Palestinians in the occupied territories, Netanyahu added: “Erdogan should learn from us how to respect all religions and uphold human rights.”
