Middle East peace 'lies in resolving Israel-Palestine'

By Ayse Humeyra Atilgan and Handan Kazanci

ISTANBUL

An independent Palestine within pre-1967 borders is the only hope for a lasting peace in the Middle East, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday.

“The only way for permanent peace in the Middle East is a free and independent Palestinian state with a capital in East Jerusalem,” he said at a meeting on Jerusalem in Istanbul.

The president added: “It is not possible to provide peace in the region without bandaging this wound in the Middle East.”

Many countries, including Turkey, have previously called to a “two-state solution” based on the borders that existed before the 1967 Israeli-Arab war that saw Israeli seize the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Golan Heights and Sinai Peninsula.

Erdogan said the Palestinian situation had provided a basis for other tensions in the region.

“Policies of repression and discrimination against our Palestinian brothers have been increasing since 1948,” he said.

He added that the issue had become a “litmus paper for the UN Security Council” that the council had so far failed to resolve. “It is impossible for the UN to find solutions to today's problems after failing to do so on that vitally important issue.”

Israel occupied East Jerusalem during the Six-Day War and annexed the city in 1980, claiming it as the unified capital of the Jewish state in a move never recognized by the international community.

Under international law, all the lands seized in 1967 are considered “occupied territories” and Israeli settlement is illegal. U.S.-sponsored peace talks between the Palestinians and Israel collapsed in 2014 over the latter’s refusal to halt settlement-building.

“To embrace the Palestine case, to defend Jerusalem, is a common case for all Muslims, a common obligation,” Erdogan said before condemning an Israeli proposal to limit noise levels from places of worship -- a plan that is seen as an attempt to silence the Adhan, or Muslim call to prayer.

He said the proposed bill was “irrational” and “conscienceless”.