The second day of the London Halal Forum, organized by the "Halal360 Platform", a joint initiative of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development (ICCD) and the Halal Products Development Company (HPDC), of which Anadolu Agency is the "Global Communication Partner", at the Queen Elizabeth II Center on 10-11 October, started with the "Palestine Breakfast" event.
Many guests attended the event, especially Palestine's Ambassador to London Husam Zomlot and Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Ibn Haldun University Bilal Erdoğan.
In his speech here, Erdogan stated that solidarity actions with Palestine were held in many cities around the world, including London, this week, and said, "Events were held in many cities in Türkiye throughout the week. Hopefully, we will meet again on the first morning of the new year, on January 1, at the point where we met last year." he said.
Recalling the support march for Palestine held on the Galata Bridge in Istanbul last year, Erdogan pointed out that half a million people participated in the march. Erdoğan said, "We will tell the world about the genocide and show solidarity with our Palestinian brothers who have suffered tremendously since 1948, especially in the last 3 years." he said.
Erdoğan stated that they established a platform with non-governmental organizations that care about the Palestine issue in October 2023 and have been discussing the humanitarian situation by holding monthly meetings since then.
Stating that they discussed aid in many areas, especially education, Erdogan said, "In our last meeting, we identified 65 thousand orphans in Gaza who need support. We are working to ensure that all of them can receive financial support every month." he said.
Stating that aid materials coming from Türkiye to the region or bearing the phrase "produced in Türkiye" were prevented from entering Gaza, Erdoğan said that although the ceasefire agreement stipulated that 600 trucks of aid materials would enter Gaza, less than 200 trucks of aid entered Gaza daily in September.
Stating that these include commercial goods, Erdogan said, "The humanitarian situation continues the same. In the so-called ceasefire environment, it may be thought that the humanitarian situation on the field has eased and is not worse than before, but unfortunately genocide continues every day." he said.
Stating that the situation in the West Bank and Jerusalem is getting worse day by day, Erdoğan emphasized that the attacks of the Israelis who usurped Palestinian lands are also increasing.
Erdoğan stated that it is important to bring resources together and use them carefully to combat this situation and said, "The Palestinian people are the most educated people in the region. They are even more educated than the Israelis. They want to destroy this and leave the Palestinians ignorant. (Palestinians) do not have access to education. Young people are either killed or deprived of educational opportunities." he said.
Stating that Ibn Haldun University made an agreement to share an amount of its donation fund with Al-Quds University every year, Erdoğan said that support for Palestine continues in the political and diplomatic fields.
Regarding the UK and some Western countries' ban on trade with Israeli settlements established by usurping occupied Palestinian lands, Erdogan said, "This is a start. I hope this ban will be extended to all Israeli goods at some point. The pressure must continue." he said.
Pointing to the messages given by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan regarding Palestine at the United Nations General Assembly, Erdoğan stated that other world leaders have begun to express their views on this issue more meaningfully.
Stating that events such as the London Halal Forum are important in bringing together Palestinian and Middle Eastern investors and producers, Erdogan said, "So when will we be able to go to Al-Aqsa Mosque? Hopefully, we can hold these meetings in peace and harmony in Jerusalem after a not too long time." he said.
