West's silence on Gaza gives green light to lawlessness: Turkish FM

ANKARA, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- The silence of the West over the attack on Gaza implies the approval of lawlessness, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday.

The silence of the West on Israel's attack on Gaza is tantamount to giving the green light to other lawless activities around the world, Fidan told reporters in a news conference in Ankara.

"In order to break down the resistance, the mosques, hospitals, and schools are bombed and we cannot keep our silence regarding those attacks," Fidan added.

Turkish foreign ministry on Wednesday criticized Israeli authorities, saying their accusations against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are baseless, and they have no right to talk about law while they keep attacking the people in Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday slammed Erdogan for his earlier comments describing Israel as a "terrorist state," saying Erdogan is supporting the "terror state" of Hamas.

Israel has been carrying out an all-out attack on Gaza over the past weeks to retaliate against the Hamas attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, during which Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took more than 200 hostages.