Erdogan's Ultimatum Scuttles Netanyahu's Planned Appearance at Gaza Summit
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt – A last-minute diplomatic crisis, triggered by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, prevented Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from attending a major international summit on Gaza, multiple sources confirm. The high-stakes meeting, held in Egypt and co-hosted by U.S. President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, was thrown into disarray following Erdogan's forceful intervention.
Prime Minister Netanyahu was expected to make a surprise appearance at the Gaza-focused summit in Sharm el-Sheikh after receiving a covert invitation from President Trump. However, those plans were abruptly canceled after President Erdogan issued a stark ultimatum: he would refuse to land his plane in Egypt and participate in the summit if Netanyahu were present. Faced with the potential withdrawal of a key regional leader, the organizers were forced to rescind the invitation to the Israeli leader.
The key figures in this diplomatic standoff were:
- Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey, who issued the threat to boycott.
- Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, whose attendance was blocked.
- Donald Trump, President of the United States, who extended the initial invitation to Netanyahu.
- Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, President of Egypt, who co-hosted the summit and reportedly relayed Erdogan's objections.
The incident unfolded in the lead-up to and during the international summit on Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. The crisis culminated on the morning of the event, Monday, October 14, 2025.
The move is consistent with President Erdogan's long-standing and vocal criticism of Israel's military actions in Gaza, which he has repeatedly labeled as "genocide." Allowing Netanyahu to share the stage at a summit aimed at addressing the crisis would have been a significant political liability for Erdogan domestically. In Turkey, where public sentiment is strongly pro-Palestinian, photographs of Erdogan alongside Netanyahu would have been seen as a betrayal.
Furthermore, Netanyahu's potential attendance was already highly controversial. He faces an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes. While Egypt is not a signatory to the ICC, Netanyahu's presence would have been a major point of contention for many attending nations, particularly Arab and Muslim states that do not have normalized relations with Israel.
According to reports, the sequence was as follows:
- President Trump secretly invited Netanyahu to the summit.
- Upon learning of the invitation, President Erdogan contacted President Sisi to formally register his protest and threaten a Turkish boycott.
- Faced with this ultimatum, the invitation to Netanyahu was withdrawn.
- The Israeli Prime Minister's office issued a statement claiming he had thanked President Trump for the invitation but was unable to attend due to its coincidence with the upcoming Jewish holiday of Passover, a justification widely seen as a diplomatic cover for the real reason.
This incident underscores the profound and enduring divisions in the Middle East, even in the face of international efforts to broker peace. President Erdogan's successful blockade of Netanyahu's participation demonstrates Turkey's significant influence and its willingness to leverage it on the Palestinian issue. It also highlights the immense political fragility surrounding any normalization of relations between Israel and the broader Muslim world.
For the summit's organizers, particularly President Trump, the episode represents a significant diplomatic setback, revealing the limits of U.S. influence when clashing with the firm regional stances of key allies. The crisis in Sharm el-Sheikh proves that the path to peace in Gaza is not only hampered by the conflict itself but also by the intricate and often conflicting political agendas of the world powers attempting to mediate it.
