Cairo, Egypt – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has once again demonstrated his political mastery on the global stage. His decision to withhold his plane's landing in Sharm el-Sheikh until Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was excluded from the Gaza Peace Summit was not just a reaction — it was a calculated diplomatic strategy.

Erdoğan managed to transform a moment of tension into a powerful statement that reshaped the tone of the summit. What force could not achieve, strategy and persuasion did.

By holding his ground, the Turkish leader not only drew attention to the suffering in Gaza but also successfully pressured European and regional leaders to adopt a firmer stance against Israel’s ongoing actions.

Today, as world leaders gather in Egypt — a Muslim-majority nation — to discuss Gaza’s future, Erdoğan’s diplomatic gamble appears to have paid off. He turned political confrontation into moral influence, forcing a moment of collective reflection among participants who had previously remained cautious in their criticism of Israel.

Analysts describe this as a masterclass in political chess: Erdoğan turned moral outrage into practical leverage, aligning Islamic solidarity with global diplomacy.

"What he could not achieve through force, he achieved through strategic diplomacy.”

Erdoğan’s move has reaffirmed Turkey’s place as a central voice for Gaza and a key power broker in the Middle East’s ongoing search for justice and peace.

Written by: Dahir Abdulle Alasow
Investigative Journalist – Waagacusub Media
Breda, The Netherlands