This came during a speech delivered by the Turkish President on Friday at the Teknofest Istanbul Festival, the world's largest aviation, space, and technology festival, with competitors from 96 countries participating.
President Erdoğan addressed a recently released video of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explaining his attempt to obtain the historic "Silwan Inscription" from Türkiye.
Erdogan said, "The blood merchants, with their recent hallucinations about me and Jerusalem, should know that Turkey, with its growing power, is giving hope to the oppressed and instilling fear and terror in the hearts of the oppressors." He added, "As you have seen, one of them recently appeared, pouring out his hatred on us because we did not give them the 'Silvan Inscription,' which is a trust from our ancestors. Do you understand who he is? Don't you?"
The Turkish president continued: "It seems that he (Netanyahu) wanted to try something by using expressions that go beyond his limits regarding our first Qiblah, Holy Jerusalem. We certainly understand what these people are trying to do," stressing: "Apart from this inscription, we will not give you even a small stone from Holy Jerusalem."
Addressing those he described as "murderers who have the blood of 65,000 oppressed people from Gaza on their hands," Erdogan added, "Jerusalem, with Muslims, is the dignity and honor of humanity. We will continue to defend it and the rights of all religions, and we will preserve it as a trust from our ancestors, despite the occupiers."
The Turkish president added: "Did Sultan Abdul Hamid (ruled the Ottoman Empire between 1876–1909) give them something? Were you able to take it back from him? We, the descendants of Sultan Abdul Hamid, will walk the same path. As long as this spirit lives in this body, we will preserve the trusts of our ancestors, and we will never withdraw our hand from Jerusalem."
The Turkish president said, "I salute my brothers in Gaza, who have not left their land despite the barbaric war of extermination they have been subjected to for 23 months," praying for mercy for the martyrs and a speedy recovery for the wounded.
He added, "No matter what malicious plots they plot, we will continue our struggle until the establishment of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital within the 1967 borders."
With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving 65,174 martyrs and 166,071 wounded, most of them children and women, and a famine that has claimed the lives of 440 Palestinians, including 148 children.
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On domestic affairs, Erdogan stated that Turkey's defense industries have become the talk of the world, emphasizing that the successes achieved in this field were not a coincidence, but rather the result of great efforts despite the restrictions imposed.
The Turkish President explained that this year's Teknofest featured 64 competitions, with 1.2 million contestants in 565,000 teams representing all 81 Turkish provinces and 96 countries participating . He noted that the festival has become a global brand, welcoming approximately 11 million visitors to date, most of whom are young people.
Erdoğan expressed his deep pride in meeting the participants in this wonderful atmosphere at the festival, wishing success to all participating young people from Turkey and around the world. He stated that Teknofest is the place where young people can transform their dreams into ideas, their ideas into projects, and their projects into technological products, expressing his deep pride in organizing the 13th edition of the festival.
Erdogan emphasized that the entire world now recognizes that Turkey has made rapid strides in technology, particularly in the defense industry. He continued, saying that the achievements of the Turkish defense industry have become the talk of the world, and that Ankara's gains in this regard, despite all the constraints, were by no means a coincidence.
The Turkish President noted that Ankara ranks 11th globally in defense industry exports and is among the top three producers of drones.
President Erdoğan added that Türkiye added the Steel Dome to its inventory on August 27, marking a new historic milestone.
He added that Türkiye is also preparing for significant steps in the field of artificial intelligence technologies, as the social media platform "InSocial" recently went online, with 1.3 million users. He emphasized that the platform was launched as a response to breaking digital hegemony.
Teknofest is an important platform for discovering young talent and showcasing their technological innovations, such as rockets and robots, with the support of government institutions. The festival plays a key role in advancing technology in Turkey, with the contribution of a large number of Turkish institutions. The first edition was held in 2018.
