President Erdoğan: Now we need to heal Palestine's wounds

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, "We must now all together heal the wounds of Palestine, restore Gaza to its feet, and be a lifeline for our brothers and sisters in Gaza. As Turkey, we will work towards this and closely monitor every stage of the process with this understanding. We will strive to manage this process with patience, foresight, sagacity, and composure for the future of our Palestinian brothers and sisters. Our desire is for the meaningful step taken yesterday to be crowned with a lasting and just peace. Undoubtedly, the only way to achieve this is the establishment of an independent, sovereign, and territorially intact Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. I wholeheartedly believe that, God willing, we will see those beautiful days."

Erdoğan said, "We are expanding and continuing the consultation process we initiated with the Turkey Meetings with various segments of society. Throughout the year, we keep our finger on the pulse of everyone, all of our citizens, from our industrialists and tradespeople to our farmers and youth. As a political movement that has always walked under the nation's guidance for 24 years, looking to the same horizon as the nation, and never deviating from its path, I consider the role of our Presidency of Economic Affairs to be crucial in this regard. Please remember that you are our eyes and ears on the ground. Each of you also serves as a strong bridge between the real sector and our party. Our Presidencies of Economic Affairs are in constant contact with civil society organizations and sector representatives in their provinces. They listen closely to their suggestions and criticisms and regularly report them to our headquarters. Based on this information, we shape both our party policies and the steps we have taken and will take as the ruling party."

'WE ARE BUILDING Türkiye'S FUTURE'

President Erdoğan, noting that they have been working with the same principle for 24 years, said, "There can be no stubbornness with the nation, and no action can be taken against the nation's will. Whatever we have done until today, we have always done it with this sensitivity. Unlike others, we have acted with an approach that consults at every level and listens to different ideas wholeheartedly, not one that dictates from the top down. God willing, we will continue to engage in politics along the same lines. We are a team that simultaneously thinks, produces projects, and implements the projects we produce; in other words, we do not leave our words merely words or shelve. As befits us, we only think about Türkiye, fight for Türkiye's interests, and build Türkiye's future. In a process where we are focused on the goal of making the 21st century, Türkiye's century, we are laying the milestones on the path to this goal. I ask each of my companions here to view their duties from this perspective. The meetings you held yesterday and today demonstrate why we need to work harder, run more, and be more engaged with our nation. "It is my belief that I have reminded you once again. I wholeheartedly believe that when you return to your provinces, each of you will make even greater efforts with the awareness of this burden on your shoulders," he said.

"WE ARE TRYING TO ACHIEVE GOALS IN THE ECONOMY"

Erdoğan noted that the global economy has not recovered from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, saying, "The broken links in the trade chain have not yet been fully repaired. Inflation, which at one point reached 60-70-year highs globally, along with production and employment issues, continue to plague many countries. In many places, including Western countries, we cannot say that inflation has ceased to be a source of concern. Indeed, we see signs of this clearly in the statements made. Even countries that have made some progress in the fight against inflation continue to exercise caution, prudence, and vigilance. Of course, we should also add the hot conflicts in our region to this. We are all well aware of the unease caused in the economic and financial markets by the war between Russia and Ukraine, which is approaching its fourth year. Similarly, the tariff tensions between the US and China, which have recently escalated, are also putting additional pressure on the global economy. As Turkey, in such an atmosphere, we are striving to keep our country away from conflict, heal the wounds of the February 6th disaster, and achieve the economic goals we have set." He used the expressions.

'EVEN THOUGH IT'S SAD, THE CHILDREN'S FACES ARE SMILE'

President Erdoğan stated that a significant step had been taken to stop the Gaza genocide, saying, "As leaders, we demonstrated a strong will in Sharm el-Sheikh. I hope that the four-party declaration we signed with US President Trump, Egyptian President El-Sisi, and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim will be a new milestone on the path to lasting peace in our region. Thank God, today in Gaza, even though it's bittersweet, children's faces are smiling; aid workers are performing a prostration of gratitude; and mothers can send their children out into the streets for the first time in two years without fear of bombs raining down from above. Just seeing this is a source of joy for us."

"WE FIND THE ENSURANCE OF A CESSENCE VERY VALUABLE"

Erdoğan noted that it may be impossible to eliminate the damage caused by the genocide, which left behind 68,000 martyrs, more than 170,000 wounded, destroyed cities, shattered lives, orphans and orphaned children, saying, "Those innocent children, whose mothers, fathers, and siblings were brutally murdered before their eyes, will feel the pain of this in their hearts throughout their lives. It will probably take years for Gaza to be restored, but they have a period of construction and a period of revitalization. Türkiye has an important responsibility here. Of course, we will discuss and discuss this together with the United States, especially the Gulf countries, and decide what steps to take in this regard. However, despite all this, we find the ceasefire in Gaza very valuable after two years of pain, massacre, and oppression. Now, we must all together heal the wounds of Palestine, restore Gaza, and be a lifeline for our brothers and sisters in Gaza. As Turkey, we will work towards this goal and closely monitor every stage of the process with this understanding." We will. We will strive to manage this process with patience, foresight, sagacity, and peace for the future of our Palestinian brothers and sisters. Our desire is for the meaningful step taken yesterday to be crowned with a lasting and just peace. Undoubtedly, the only way to achieve this is the establishment of an independent, sovereign, and territorially intact Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. I wholeheartedly believe that we will see those beautiful days, God willing.

"WE WILL HAVE RECOVERED OUR EARTHQUAKE ZONE"

President Erdoğan stated that they have begun to see the effects of the economic program they implemented after the 2023 elections, saying, "We have achieved significant results in many areas, especially inflation. Undoubtedly, we still have a long way to go. As I've always said, our top priority is to fundamentally address the high cost of living problem. Despite obstacles beyond our control, such as drought, agricultural frost, and regional crises, we are determined to achieve our goals. We are continuing to rapidly heal the wounds of the earthquake. To date, our public sector has spent 3.6 trillion lira at current prices, or approximately $90 billion. Last month, we handed over the keys to our 304,000th disaster-resistant housing unit in Malatya to our beneficiaries. By the end of 2025, we will have delivered a total of 453,000 independent units, God willing, having revitalized our earthquake zone. We are prioritizing these expenditures without compromising fiscal discipline."

'WE WILL START THE CHEAP RENTAL PROCESS'

Erdoğan announced that they would be implementing a significant project to address high rents and housing prices, saying, "From now on, the state will be responsible for planning the rent. In other words, citizens can rent their own homes and exploit them with high rents. Instead of allowing these opportunities, the state will rent out these social housing units itself. God willing, we will sincerely initiate the process of providing affordable rentals. With this project, which we call the 'Housing Project of the Century,' we will build a total of 500,000 social housing units in all 81 provinces. We will allocate special quotas to families of martyrs and veterans, retirees, families with three children, and citizens with disabilities. Furthermore, with this project, we will implement rental housing for the first time in Türkiye through TOKİ (Housing Development Administration of Turkey). We will rent some of these social housing units to our citizens at affordable prices, providing relief to low-income families. Our housing project will strengthen our hand not only in social policies but also in the fight against inflation, contributing to our achievement of the single-digit inflation target. We will share the details of our project with our nation at the end of October."

'OUR PRIMARY DUTY IS TO FIND SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS'

President Erdoğan stated, "There is no change in our government's growth policy, which focuses on production, investment, employment, and exports. Despite uncertainties in the global economy and low growth rates in our trade partners, the Turkish economy continues to grow. Our annual growth in the first half of 2025 was 3.6 percent. Our national income approached $1.5 trillion on an annualized basis. On the production front, there was an increase in value added in all sectors except the agricultural sector, which contracted due to the agricultural frost. Our manufacturing industry has demonstrated its highest performance in the last 12 quarters. Our unemployment rate has been in single-digit levels for 28 months. We see all of these as promising figures; however, we are never deaf to the demands and expectations of our real sector during this process. I would like to clearly state that we are aware of every problem, every need, and every challenge we face. We attach great importance to meeting these demands without compromising our economic stability program. As the government and political institution, our primary duty is to find solutions to problems. We have always done this for 23 years. We will continue to be the ones producing solutions." We will be," we said.

'CHP IS GROWINGLY LOSING ITS IDENTITY AS A POLITICAL PARTY'

Erdoğan stated that they are not only facing global and regional challenges as the ruling party, but also a main opposition party that has practically vowed to cripple the Turkish economy. When the corruption operations began, they invented a "boycott" to save the pickpockets who had settled in the treasury from prosecution. They put every brand, institution, company, and media outlet that did not support them into this boycott bag. They did everything incompatible with reason and conscience, from booing these brands at their rallies to targeting them. But no matter what they did, they failed. The boycott calls across our country always fell flat on their faces, just like all their other endeavors. Our nation did not give credence to their reckless calls to shut down the economy. Now it is understood that their aim with the boycott was to threaten and extort national brands. They are becoming more and more like them by mingling with criminal organizations. Our nation is now confusing whether these are political parties or mafia. Is there a political party that threatens everyone? "Can there be a political party that has its hitmen lynch anyone who doesn't agree? Under Mr. Özel's administration, the CHP is gradually losing its identity as a political party. The CHP is being mismanaged. It's being tossed around like a ship with a blocked rudder. The captain, however, cares neither about the ship nor the passengers. He's all about saving the day with empty agendas and frivolous matters. We wouldn't want anyone to fall into such a situation, even if they were our rivals. On the contrary, we want our rivals to match our quality and caliber. Our hope is that the CHP will overcome this identity crisis it's experiencing as soon as possible."

'FALSE CANNOT BE OUR REFERENCE'

Criticizing CHP Chairman Özgür Özel's international contacts, Erdoğan said, "They can't seem to shake the habit of complaining about their own country to foreigners when they go abroad. They were supposed to act as the Turkish party, not the main opposition party, when visiting other countries. But they didn't even keep their own promise. The CHP Chairman's latest visit was a complete disaster at this point. Look, I'm speaking independently of myself. With all due respect, booing this country's popularly elected president to his comrades in western capitals isn't politics. Being in opposition isn't. What befits Türkiye's main opposition party and leader, let alone paving the way for such a disgrace, is to act as a bulwark against it. Domestic politics and foreign policy are two separate things. Domestic and international are two separate things. If he doesn't change his mentors, I'm afraid he'll never learn. Hopefully, he'll have the opportunity to learn this before it's too late, before he disgraces himself further and damages Türkiye's reputation even further. Of course, we certainly won't base our stance on him. Wrong cannot be our reference point." "It is unbecoming of us to respond to a wrong with another wrong. We will strive to maintain courtesy, respect, and common sense in politics. We will continue to elevate Türkiye's reputation and brand value above all political competition. We will strive to represent our nation with honor and glory wherever we are, in every meeting we attend, whether at home or abroad," he said.

DHA

Reporter: News Center