Related News
Turkish PM hailed as hero on return
TURKISH Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan received a hero's welcome on his return to Istanbul yesterday after he stormed out of a heated debate on Israel's Gaza offensive at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Thousands of people gathered at Ataturk airport to greet Erdogan when he returned, waving Turkish and Palestinian flags and chanting "Turkey is proud of you."
After a fiery exchange with Israeli President Shimon Peres on Thursday in which he said: "When it comes to killing, you know very well how to kill," Erdogan said he might never return to the gathering of the rich and powerful.
During a debate on the Middle East Peres had defended his country's assault on Gaza over the past month and, with a raised voice and pointed finger, asked what Erdogan would do if rockets were fired at Istanbul every night.
"Our people would have expected the same reaction from any Turkish prime minister," Erdogan told a news conference at the airport yesterday morning. "This was a matter of the esteem and prestige of my country. Hence, my reaction had to be clear. I could not have allowed anyone to poison the prestige and the honor of my country."
"Our reproach is totally against the Israeli administration," Erdogan said.
Turks gave a mixed reaction to Erdogan's walk-out, former diplomats saying it was likely to fuel tension between Israel and Turkey and might weaken Ankara's position as a neutral mediator in the Middle East.
Peres had asked Erdogan directly: "What would you do if you were to have in Istanbul every night a hundred rockets?"
Erdogan, visibly angry, had responded strongly to Peres's repeated question of what they would do in Israel's position.
"President Peres you are older than me and your voice is very loud. The reason for you raising your voice is the psychology of guilt. I will not raise my voice that much. When it comes to killing you know very well how to kill. I know very well how you hit and killed children on the beaches," Erdogan said.
Thousands of people gathered at Ataturk airport to greet Erdogan when he returned, waving Turkish and Palestinian flags and chanting "Turkey is proud of you."
After a fiery exchange with Israeli President Shimon Peres on Thursday in which he said: "When it comes to killing, you know very well how to kill," Erdogan said he might never return to the gathering of the rich and powerful.
During a debate on the Middle East Peres had defended his country's assault on Gaza over the past month and, with a raised voice and pointed finger, asked what Erdogan would do if rockets were fired at Istanbul every night.
"Our people would have expected the same reaction from any Turkish prime minister," Erdogan told a news conference at the airport yesterday morning. "This was a matter of the esteem and prestige of my country. Hence, my reaction had to be clear. I could not have allowed anyone to poison the prestige and the honor of my country."
"Our reproach is totally against the Israeli administration," Erdogan said.
Turks gave a mixed reaction to Erdogan's walk-out, former diplomats saying it was likely to fuel tension between Israel and Turkey and might weaken Ankara's position as a neutral mediator in the Middle East.
Peres had asked Erdogan directly: "What would you do if you were to have in Istanbul every night a hundred rockets?"
Erdogan, visibly angry, had responded strongly to Peres's repeated question of what they would do in Israel's position.
"President Peres you are older than me and your voice is very loud. The reason for you raising your voice is the psychology of guilt. I will not raise my voice that much. When it comes to killing you know very well how to kill. I know very well how you hit and killed children on the beaches," Erdogan said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS
- |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证:沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证:31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证:0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证:沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证:沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.