26 Sep 2019; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday urged caution over blaming Iran for the 14 September attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities.
Speaking during an interview with Fox News, Erdogan said: “Well I don’t think it would be the right thing to blame Iran”, adding that the attacks came from several parts of Yemen, in reference to the Houthi movement which claimed responsibility for the strikes.
“If we just place the entire burden on Iran, it won’t be the right way to go. Because the evidence available does not necessarily point to that fact,” he stressed.
The outspoken Turkish leader has previously hinted that Saudi is ultimately responsible for the attacks because whoever dropped bombs first is to blame – alluding to the Saudi-led coalition air strikes on Yemen which began in 2015 in a bid to drive back the Houthis from the capital, Sanaa.
His comments come after the leaders of France, Germany and the UK condemned the attacks and held Tehran responsible, a charge which Iran vehemently denies.
While Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir slammed Iran’s “rampage of death and destruction”, in an interview with the BBC.
Leaders from around the world convened in New York for the 74th session of the UN General Assembly with debates taking place between 24-30 September and which comes amid rising tensions in the Middle East and global pressure to tackle climate change.
