ISTANBUL

Türkiye on Friday strongly condemned a social media post by Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, blasting it as "slander" and "disinformation."

On X, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said Katz's post targeted both Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was assassinated last month in Tehran, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, branding it “slander intended for disinformation purposes.”

“These lies, aimed at diverting attention from the genocide taking place in Gaza, will not hinder our support for the Palestinian people,” the statement added.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an attack last October by Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

Since then, an ongoing Israeli offensive against the Gaza Strip has killed over 40,000 Palestinians.

Over 10 months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.