Seven political parties in Turkey have called for an emergency session of parliament to discuss what they described as a “massacre” in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza as well as steps to deliver humanitarian aid to Palestinians, who have been under Israeli bombardment for almost two years.
The Republican People’s Party (CHP), the pro-Kurdish Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), the New Path parliamentary group, which comprises several small opposition parties, the Islamist New Welfare Party (YRP), the Workers’ Party of Turkey (TİP), the Labor Party (EMEP) and the Democrat Party jointly requested that the parliament, currently in summer recess, convene on August 29 at 2 p.m.
CHP parliamentary group deputy chair Murat Emir said in a post on X on Wednesday that the parties had agreed to “discuss what needs to be done to stop the inhumane massacre in Gaza and to deliver humanitarian assistance.”
The Turkish Parliament went to summer recess on July 21 and is scheduled to reconvene on October 1. The extraordinary session would interrupt that break. Under parliamentary rules, an extraordinary session can be called if at least one-fifth of lawmakers in the 600-seat parliament submit a written request, which is then approved by the parliament speaker.
Israel launched its campaign after a Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, that killed 1,206 people and led to the taking of about 250 hostages.
The Gaza health ministry says more than 62,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the conflict began.
Turkey has long been one of Israel’s harshest critics in the Muslim world. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused Israel of committing “genocide” in Gaza and compared its government to Nazi Germany. Ankara also announced a trade embargo in May 2024 and has sent humanitarian aid to Gaza, while continuing to face criticism at home for allegedly maintaining some commercial ties with Israel.
The seven parties’ call come amid the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where a famine was declared for the first time in parts of the enclave since Israel allows only limited humanitarian aid.
On August 22 the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), an international body that assesses food emergencies, declared famine in parts of the Gaza Governorate, which includes Gaza City. The IPC defines famine as a situation in which at least one in five households suffers extreme food shortages, leading to critical levels of malnutrition and death.
