Many festivities have been called off against the backdrop of Israel’s escalating attacks in Gaza.
Turkey is commemorating its 100-year anniversary as a republic, but many of the festivities planned for Sunday have been called off against the backdrop of Israel’s escalating attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip.
The low-profile affair shows the far-reaching impacts of the bloody Israel-Hamas war, but also brings up uncomfortable divisions within Turkish society over the state’s secular legacy, elements of which President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has sought to challenge.
On Sunday, Erdogan laid a customary wreath at the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey’s revered founding father. “Our country is in safe hands, you may rest in peace,” he said.
Erdogan was scheduled to travel to Istanbul afterward to watch a procession of military ships on the Bosporus, followed by a drone and fireworks show. He was expected to deliver a speech marking the milestone, to play up his government’s accomplishments.
However, Turkey cut down on much of the fanfare expected for the once-in-a-century event. It held no official state reception and cancelled special TV coverage of planned concerts and festivities, citing the “alarming human tragedy in Gaza”.
Erdogan’s appearance at a pro-Palestine rally in Istanbul the day before also partly eclipsed the centennial. There, he accused Israel of behaving like a “war criminal” and said there was a “vicious massacre happening in Gaza”.