President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said if the U.N. Security Council does not take action against Israel’s aggression, the General Assembly reserves the right to impose Resolution 377 “Uniting for Peace” to recommend the use of force.
The resolution was adopted by the UNGA on Nov. 3, 1950 and resolves that if the UNSC fails to fulfill its duty of preserving international peace, the general body can make appropriate recommendations to take collective measures.
These measures include the use of armed forces when needed, in case of the violation of peace or to maintain or restore international peace and security.
Erdoğan’s call came as Israel prepares a ground invasion of Lebanon, in addition to its ongoing aggression in Gaza, where it killed over 41,000 people, mostly women and children.
“Defending Palestine and Lebanon today means defending humanity, peace and coexistence of different faiths and different lifestyles,” Erdoğan told reporters following a cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.
He noted that over 1 million Lebanese civilians have already been displaced due to Israel’s violence, as Türkiye strives to send humanitarian assistance supplies, with the latest 30 tons of aid, which reached Beirut on Wednesday.
“We expedited our diplomatic efforts to stop Israel’s attacks. The international community can no longer remain silent to Israel’s rogue acts,” Erdoğan said and added that Muslim countries must give the greatest reaction to Israel’s aggression.
“We will never consent to this oppression, barbarism. We will not submit to their impudence,” he added.
“A handful of bloodthirsty, hateful and radical Zionists are setting our region, and the whole world on fire,” the president said, as he warned that Israel’s aggression threatens the peace of everyone in the region, including Muslims, Jews and Christians.
Ankara has accused Tel Aviv of looking to expand the ongoing conflict with Palestinians to the wider region since Oct. 7. Türkiye has also criticized the U.N. for becoming a dysfunctional global body, that fails to fulfill its founding mission.
Türkiye’s top diplomat Hakan Fidan said that the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, the latest in Israel’s expanding military actions, pointed to Tel Aviv’s desire to expand the ongoing conflict with Palestinians to the wider region. He also lamented U.S. support for Israel.
Since Sept. 23, Israel has launched massive airstrikes against what it calls Hezbollah targets across Lebanon, killing more than 900 people and injuring over 2,700 others, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.Several Hezbollah commanders have been killed in the Israeli assault, including its leader Hassan Nasrallah.Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said early Thursday that Tel Aviv will only accept a cease-fire in Lebanon when Hezbollah is pushed away from the border to north of the Litani River and disarmed.Hezbollah and Israel have been engaged in cross-border warfare since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 41,600 people, mostly women and children, following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.The international community has warned that Israeli attacks in Lebanon could escalate the Gaza conflict into a wider regional war.
