Erdogan calls Gaza war an 'ecocide' at COP31 as aid and storm damage concerns grow

Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has used a speech at COP31 in Antalya to describe the war in Gaza as an "ecocide" and to call for more humanitarian aid to reach the territory. His remarks came as reporting from Gaza described heavy rains and flooding that have destroyed shelters and added to the pressure on displaced Palestinians. The comments place the Gaza conflict directly into the climate summit agenda, linking environmental damage with the wider humanitarian crisis.

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Erdogan said the world should recognise the environmental impact of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. He also urged the Israeli government to allow more humanitarian assistance into the Palestinian territory. The summit is being held in Turkey, and Israel was not invited to the event.

Israel's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to the supplied material. The immediate situation in Gaza remains severe, with strong rains and flooding in recent days destroying many tents and makeshift shelters used by displaced people. At least four people died earlier this week when a sandbank collapsed on the shelter where they were staying.

The weather has also left many displaced residents without food, drinking water or a dry place to sleep. Aid is still entering Gaza, but imports remain far below pre-war levels. The intervention matters because it brings together two crises that have increasingly overlapped in Gaza: the war itself and the environmental damage caused by months of destruction and displacement.

A 2025 report cited in the supplied material said 97% of trees had been damaged and that marine pollution had spread, with the local environment expected to take years to recover. That assessment underlines how the conflict has affected not only civilian infrastructure but also land, water and ecosystems. The speech also comes against a backdrop of sharp political tension between Turkey and Israel.

Erdogan has been a vocal critic of Israel, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has previously called the Turkish president an antisemitic tyrant, according to the supplied row. Separately, a UN-backed panel of independent experts concluded last year that Israel committed genocide in Gaza, an allegation Israel has strongly denied and described as antisemitic. Those disputes continue to shape the diplomatic context around any discussion of Gaza at international forums.

What remains unclear is whether Erdogan's remarks will lead to any practical change in aid access or diplomatic engagement around Gaza during the summit. The supplied material does not indicate any immediate response from Israel or other participants to his comments. The next developments to watch are whether humanitarian access improves, whether the weather-related damage in Gaza worsens, and whether the climate summit produces any concrete reference to the conflict's environmental toll.

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