Turkey’s Erdogan: A Highly Questionable Antisemite

TOI: Erdogan derides Israeli and Greek Concerns

Recent reports and public statements have raised serious questions about the future of the U.S. Turkey alliance. At the heart of the debate are allegations that Erdogan considered joining Iran during its conflict with Israel, discussions about a possible U.S. sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, and Ankara’s continued support for Hamas. Taken together, these developments have prompted many to ask whether Turkey remains a reliable NATO ally or whether its policies increasingly conflict with American and Israeli security interests. Before the United States considers restoring advanced weapons sales, these concerns deserve careful scrutiny and a full public explanation.

Turkey’s Jewish population is about 15,000 by most commonly cited “core” estimates, with some broader definitions putting it closer to 18,300-19,950. A 2024 JPR estimate gives 15,000 for the core Jewish population and notes 14,000 in an Oxford Academic chapter, while broader counts are higher depending on definition.

Perhaps the most insightful evaluation came from the brilliant Fox News journalist Mark R. Levin. In his remarks he asks if we are really supposed to believe Erdogan was prepared to join Iran against us and Israel? The president has repeatedly said he persuaded Erdogan not to enter the war on behalf of the Iranian regime. If that’s the case, then he prevented Turkey from going to war against us and Israel?

He states, “I really think that this needs to be explained in detail and fully pursued. If a NATO country was going to join the enemy in our war against Iran, we need to know all about it. The president is rightly condemning the lack of support from NATO countries, but in the case of Turkey, it was prepared to fight us? Can you imagine Erdogan using our military equipment against us ? Now this thug will have our F-35s ? And were praising the hell out of this guy like he’s our best friend? We need to know a lot more about this.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dismissed objections from Israel and Greece concerning the possible US sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. Speaking at a closing news conference at the end of the 2 day summit he hosted, the Turkish president said opposition raised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Greece’s Kryiakos Mitsotakakis “has no place in my world.”

Trump had announced during a meeting with Erdogan on the previous Tuesday that the US purchase had led to the country being kicked out of the F–35 fighter jet program. However, Trump suggested he hadn’t made up his mind concerning the F-35s, though Erdogan insisted that Trump has a “positive approach” toward the sale of the stealth fighters.

“Hopefully, when the F-35s are delivered to Turkey, the whole world will say America kept its promise,” Erdogan said. His remarks came after Ankara dismissed Israeli concerns about Turkey’s potential acquisition of F-35s earlier in the day as “disinformation. Netanyahu publicly urged the US not to sell the jets to NATO ally Turkey, arguing it would “upset the power balance” in the region.

Erdogan is a longtime supporter of Gaza-ruling Hamas, whose October 7, 2023, invasion of southern Israel sparked the two-year-long war in the enclave. In fact, Ankara’s foreign ministry said Israel’s pushback could not “conceal the Netanyahu government’s genocide in Gaza, its policies of occupation and annexation, and its destabilizing actions in the region.”

As Israel and Turkey sparred verbally, Trump praised both acknowledging the ongoing feud between them, saying he told the Israeli premier that he personally prevented Erdogan from entering the war against Iran on Tehran’s side. There is substantial evidence that Erdogan has used rhetoric widely viewed as antisemitic, but it is more precise to say he has repeatedly made antisemitic or antisemitism-adjacent statements rather than reduce the question to a simple yes or no. He has also explicitly denied being antisemitic and said his criticism is aimed at Israel’s government, not Jews.

Erdogan has a long record of inflammatory statements about Israel that critics say cross into antisemitic territory, including language that conflates Israel, Zionism, and Jews. Reporting from the Jewish Press and other outlets describes his early politics as marked by antisemitism, and later coverage has tied his pro-Hamas rhetoric and harsh anti-Israel messaging to rise in antisemitism in Turkey.

He has argued that criticizing Israel is not antisemitism and has said he distinguishes between Jews and the Israeli state. In a 2014 speech, he explicitly denied being antisemitic and called antisemitism a crime against humanity, while insisting his attacks were directed at Israel policy.

JNS June 28, 2026: Israel’s Foreign Ministry sharply rebuked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after he accused “Zionism” of threatening Turkey’s survival, calling the Turkish leader a “dictator” who persecutes opponents and backs Jihadist groups. In a post on X, the ministry said that Erdogan who “persecutes political opponents, imprisons journalists, massacres Kurds, occupies the territory of others will not succeed.

Beyond the geopolitical questions, the United States should proceed with extreme caution before strengthening Turkey militarily. Turkey’s Jewish community has dwindled to only about 15,000 people, making it one of the region’s smallest and most vulnerable Jewish populations. At the same time, President Erdogan has repeatedly used rhetoric that many Jewish organizations and analysts have criticized as antisemitic or as contributing to antisemitic hostility, even as he insists his criticism is directed at the Israeli government rather than Jews.

Erdogan has also been one of Hamas’s most vocal supporters, while he is backing jihadist groups and using inflammatory anti-Israel rhetoric. These positions have led to concerns not only about Israel’s security but also about the safety of Jewish communities and regional stability.

If President Trump is correct that he persuaded Erdogan not to enter the conflict on Iran’s side, that raises an important question, should the United States reward a leader who was considering siding with America’s adversary by providing him with some of the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft? Critics argue that before any F-35 sale moves forward, Congress and the American people deserve an accounting of Turkey’s intentions and the potential risks to both U.S. interests and our allies.