Türkiye's Erdogan Says Trust in EU Shaken by Its Stance on Israel-Hamas War

In this handout photograph taken and released by Kazakhstan's Presidential Press Service on November 3, 2023, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the 10th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States, in Astana. (Photo by Handout / Kazakhstan’s Presidential Press Service / AFP)
In this handout photograph taken and released by Kazakhstan's Presidential Press Service on November 3, 2023, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the 10th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States, in Astana. (Photo by Handout / Kazakhstan’s Presidential Press Service / AFP)
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Türkiye's Erdogan Says Trust in EU Shaken by Its Stance on Israel-Hamas War

In this handout photograph taken and released by Kazakhstan's Presidential Press Service on November 3, 2023, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the 10th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States, in Astana. (Photo by Handout / Kazakhstan’s Presidential Press Service / AFP)
In this handout photograph taken and released by Kazakhstan's Presidential Press Service on November 3, 2023, Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the 10th Summit of the Council of Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States, in Astana. (Photo by Handout / Kazakhstan’s Presidential Press Service / AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the European Union (EU) had not taken a fair stance on the Israel-Hamas war and the situation in Gaza and as a result trust in the bloc had been "deeply shaken", broadcaster Haberturk and others reported on Saturday.

The support shown by European countries for Israel stemmed from "their debts" over the Holocaust, Erdogan added in comments to reporters on a return flight from Kazakhstan on Friday.

Erdogan revealed that his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi would visit Türkiye at the end of November to hold talks on Gaza, and that he would also attend a summit of Muslim countries in Riyadh later this month.

He stated there would no longer be any trust in the global system if Israel was not stopped and held accountable for "its war crimes and human rights violations".

He also said the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) would push for a ceasefire and discuss the parameters of such a move during its summit in Riyadh later this month.

Gaza must be part of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state once the Israel-Hamas war is over, Erdogan added, saying Ankara would not support models "gradually erasing Palestinians from history".

He said his intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin was in contact with Israeli and Palestinian authorities, as well as Hamas.

He stressed he would not take Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a counterpart, but added Ankara would not sever its ties with Israel either.



Russian Drones Knock out Ukrainian Power Facilities Near Kyiv 

A Ukrainian serviceman of the 225th Separate Assault Battalion patrols as he walks past an apartment building destroyed by artillery fire in the town of Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, on July 24, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A Ukrainian serviceman of the 225th Separate Assault Battalion patrols as he walks past an apartment building destroyed by artillery fire in the town of Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, on July 24, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
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Russian Drones Knock out Ukrainian Power Facilities Near Kyiv 

A Ukrainian serviceman of the 225th Separate Assault Battalion patrols as he walks past an apartment building destroyed by artillery fire in the town of Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, on July 24, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)
A Ukrainian serviceman of the 225th Separate Assault Battalion patrols as he walks past an apartment building destroyed by artillery fire in the town of Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, on July 24, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (AFP)

Russia attacked Ukrainian energy facilities in two regions between the capital Kyiv and the Russian border with drones overnight, leaving tens of thousands of people without power, Ukraine's national power grid operator said on Friday. 

The governor of one of the regions, Chernihiv, told national television at least 15 people were wounded and some infrastructure and a dormitory were damaged during an attack on the town of Nizhyn, without giving more details. 

More than 68,000 consumers in certain districts of Zhytomyr and Kyiv regions lost power, Ukrenergo said. In the morning, about 30,000 consumers were still without power after what were the latest of near daily Russian attacks on the power system since the spring. 

Overall, Ukrainian air defenses destroyed 20 out of 22 Russian attack drones launched overnight, Ukraine's air force chief said. Most of the drones were shot down in the southern Kherson and northeastern Sumy regions, along with the two in the north. 

The emergency service said an overnight attack on Kherson had damaged six residential buildings and caused significant fires in open areas. 

Russia has attacked energy facilities across Ukraine with missiles and drones over the past few months, causing blackouts in many regions and forcing Kyiv to start large-scale electricity imports from the European Union.