The Humanitarian Relief Foundation (İHH) has organized a program in the capital, Ankara, under the theme “Resurrection for Gaza and Orphans,” reaffirming solidarity with the Palestinian people, support for their resistance against Israeli occupation, and the Islamic duty to protect children orphaned by war.

Held at the North Ankara Congress and Culture Center by İHH’s Ankara branch, the gathering brought together humanitarian workers, Islamic scholars, academics, writers and artists to discuss the ongoing suffering in Gaza, the Palestinian struggle for freedom, the future of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the responsibility of Muslims to support vulnerable children.

Speakers included İHH Ankara Branch Chairman Hacı Bayram Şahin, İHH Gaza Representative Kevser Yılmaz, İHH General Chairman Bülent Yıldırım, Palestinian academic Prof. Dr. Halit Uweys and theologian-writer Dr. İhsan Şenocak. Television presenter and writer Serdar Tuncer and hymn artist Ömer Karaoğlu also participated in the program.

Throughout the gathering, speakers stressed that solidarity with Palestine must extend beyond expressions of sympathy to sustained humanitarian assistance, collective responsibility and efforts to uphold justice.

'Ankara's link in the century-old Palestinian cause'

Opening the program, İHH Ankara Branch Chairman Hacı Bayram Şahin welcomed participants and said the gathering represented more than an event commemorating the suffering of Gaza's people.

“You have come here to stand with the oppressed people of honorable and blessed Gaza,” Şahin said, describing the event as a demonstration of solidarity with the Palestinian resistance.

“This program is not merely a commemoration of the people of Gaza; it is a link in the century-old resistance, the Ankara arm of the resistance front. This program is the Ankara link of our century-old Palestinian cause,” he added.

Şahin's remarks framed support for Palestine as a continuing commitment rooted in solidarity with an oppressed people struggling for their rights and freedom.

İHH representative recounts 25 years of solidarity with Gaza

İHH Gaza Representative Kevser Yılmaz, who said she had lived in Gaza since 1999, recalled witnessing the humanitarian crisis and the tightening restrictions imposed on the besieged territory over the years.

Yılmaz said she had encountered İHH's humanitarian work throughout Gaza when she first arrived and subsequently worked alongside the organization in supporting the Palestinian population.

“For 25 years, alhamdulillah, under the wings of İHH we remained together with the people of Gaza,” she said.

Recalling the outbreak of the Second Intifada in 2000 and the Israeli military campaign that followed, Yılmaz described how Gaza's isolation deepened as restrictions tightened around the territory.

She said the blockade had left Gaza's population increasingly cut off from the outside world, worsening the hardships faced by civilians.

Despite these conditions, Yılmaz emphasized that Palestinian resistance had continued through successive periods of hardship. She also highlighted the roles played by Palestinian figures, including Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, in the Palestinian struggle.

'We stand with orphans to be freed from orphanhood'

İHH General Chairman Bülent Yıldırım called on Muslims to translate their professed commitment to justice, compassion and goodness into practical action, warning that wars and massacres around the world continued to leave children without parents.

He said resistance to oppression was visible in Gaza, Sudan, Lebanon and other parts of the world, arguing that the defense of justice should transcend sectarian and ideological divisions.

“During this resistance, martyrs are given and orphans are left behind. In fact, these orphans are protecting us. They are safeguarding us,” Yıldırım said.

He challenged the audience to reconsider the meaning of orphanhood, describing the failure to care for vulnerable children as a moral and spiritual deprivation.

“If we do not take care of them, we are the orphans. If we do not think of them, we are the orphans. If we do not stroke their heads, we are the orphans,” he said.

“We stand with the orphans in order to be freed from orphanhood,” Yıldırım added, urging Muslims to assume greater responsibility for children whose lives have been devastated by war.

His remarks placed humanitarian assistance at the heart of the gathering, emphasizing that caring for orphans is not simply an act of charity but a moral responsibility grounded in Islamic teachings.

 

Palestinian academic calls for greater commitment to Al-Aqsa's liberation

Palestinian academic Prof. Dr. Halit Uweys, also known as Khalid al-Uwaysi, focused on the responsibilities of Muslims toward Gaza and Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.

He criticized the inability of Muslim-majority countries to provide unrestricted humanitarian assistance to Gaza and called for greater unity and commitment in confronting the challenges facing the Palestinian people.

“Today there are 2 billion Muslims floating like debris on the surface of the flood. We cannot even send a glass of water into Gaza without Israel’s permission!” Uweys said.

He expressed confidence that Al-Aqsa Mosque would one day be free from Israeli control, arguing that achieving this goal required sustained effort rather than passive hope.

“That day will come when the doors of Masjid al-Aqsa will be open. There will be no Zionist soldier at the gate of Masjid al-Aqsa,” he said.

Uweys urged Muslims to view the prospect of liberation as a responsibility requiring action, perseverance and sacrifice.

“The answer depends on you. However much we work for the conquest, that is how close the conquest is,” he said, praying that Muslims would live to witness the liberation of Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories.

Drawing on the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), Uweys recalled the three-year boycott endured by the early Muslim community and challenged the audience to consider what their response would have been had they witnessed the suffering of hungry children in Gaza during the Prophet's lifetime.

“If our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) were in Gaza today while children were dying of hunger, would you say, ‘We only prayed’?” he asked.

Following chants of “Mehmetçik to Gaza,” Uweys reiterated his belief that the liberation of Gaza and Al-Aqsa was not a distant prospect, while urging participants to intensify their efforts.

He called on Muslims to move beyond limited contributions and dedicate greater resources to the Palestinian cause.

'Caring for orphans is a way to serve Islam'

Theologian and writer Dr. İhsan Şenocak emphasized that supporting orphans was both a humanitarian obligation and a means of serving Islam.

Referring to the Quranic teaching that believers should help Allah's cause so that He may help them, Şenocak urged participants to care for children who had lost their parents in wars and other tragedies.

“If you stroke the heads of the orphans among His servants, you help Allah. You help His religion,” he said.

Şenocak expressed hope that, through faith, solidarity and sustained commitment, Muslims would one day celebrate the liberation of Jerusalem and Gaza.

“When Allah helps, that day conquest prayers will be performed in Jerusalem and Gaza, God willing,” he said.

Scholar urges smokers to redirect spending toward orphans

Şenocak also proposed a practical initiative to support orphaned children, calling on smokers to quit smoking and donate the money they would otherwise spend on cigarettes.

Citing Islamic teachings on the preservation of life and concerns about the health risks of smoking, he urged İHH to establish an account through which former smokers could direct their savings toward orphan care.

“Let the orphans save you from such a haram. Let this night be a means,” he said, calling for the initiative to be expanded across Türkiye and, eventually, throughout the Muslim world.

He said the proposal could serve two purposes: encouraging people to abandon a harmful habit and providing sustained financial support for children in need.

Program concludes with hymns

The gathering also featured poetry recitations by Serdar Tuncer before concluding with hymns performed by Ömer Karaoğlu.

The program underscored the central message of the organizers: that solidarity with Palestine, support for the Palestinian people's pursuit of freedom, the liberation of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the protection of war orphans are interconnected responsibilities requiring faith, compassion and sustained action.

For the participants, the gathering was both an expression of solidarity with Gaza and a call for Muslims to turn their concern for the oppressed into practical humanitarian support. (ILKHA)