Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday (Jun 18, 2025) that Iran had the “legitimate” right to defend itself in the face of Israel’s ongoing bombing campaign, now in its sixth day.
“It is a very natural, legitimate and legal right for Iran to defend itself against Israel’s thuggery and state terrorism,” the Turkish leader said, a day after referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “the biggest threat to the security of the region”.
The long-range blitz began early on Friday (Jun 13, 2025), when Israel launched a massive bombing campaign that prompted Iran to hit back with missiles and drones, including hypersonic missiles.
“These attacks were organised while the Iranian nuclear negotiations were taking place,” Mr. Erdogan said.
“Israel, which possesses nuclear weapons and does not recognise any international rules.. did not wait for the negotiations to end but carried out a terrorist act without waiting for the result,” he added.
