Ahmad 
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is no different from German leader Adolf Hitler, comparing Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip to Nazi treatment of Jews.
Addressing Netanyahu and his military, Erdogan asked at an event in Ankara: “What is the difference between you and what Hitler did? What Netanyahu is doing is much more terrible than what Hitler did.”
While the Turkish president renewed his criticism of the West’s unequivocal support for Israel, he pointed to the harassment of academics in the West for their humanitarian attitudes towards Gaza, adding that Turkey welcomes them.
Erdogan said his country’s universities were open to world scientists defending the Gaza Strip who were facing pressure at their current universities.
“Scientists who acknowledge the existence of injustice in Gaza are now under pressure and threats, as they were in Nazi Germany 80 years ago,” he said.
Erdogan said that “institutions that pay lip service and spend a lot of money are completely worthless when it comes to talking about Israel and its injustice.”
In December, University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magille announced her resignation after days of criticism and pressure following her testimony at a congressional hearing on accusations of rising “anti-Semitism” on campus.
Former Harvard presidents also announced their support for incumbent President Claudine Gay, who announced her resignation after coming under criticism for deeming the pro-Palestine demonstrations to be “freedom of thought.”