(JNS) Did you hear the latest news? The Turkish Special Service (Forces) is ready for “immediate deployment to Gaza.” So, of course, according to their dictator, everyone everywhere must take heed of this profound announcement immediately and express their unconditional support.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is becoming increasingly impatient lately with the apparent lack of response to his major announcements regarding the Gaza Strip. Does anyone even know there’s such a thing as a Turkish Special Service?

It would appear that he is on the verge of an increasingly embarrassing geopolitical situation. He is worried about impending humiliation—as he should be—and appearing irrelevant in front of his Arab neighbors, as Israel has effectively shut him out of participation in the International Stabilization Force (ISF) as defined in Stage II of US President Donald Trump’s 20-point Gaza plan.

In fact, being cut out of the military presence in Gaza could have domestic political implications for Erdoğan as a foreign-policy setback, and severely reduces his image as a powerful Muslim leader and defender of the Palestinians. If he is unable to secure a meaningful role in post-war Gaza (such as deploying troops) due to Israeli and US opposition, then he may be seen by his citizens as ineffective on the international stage. This perceived “powerlessness” is a huge factor in the Muslim world and the death knell for any Arab ruler. Instead of the hero image he craves, he would turn into the laughing stock of Trump’s Middle East peace plan. This, in turn, would no doubt contribute to declining popularity among those Muslims who expect Turkey to be a strong regional power against Israel and the West.

It is for these reasons (but mostly, for saving face) that Erdoğan is demanding that Trump do whatever it takes to force Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accede to his demands for Turkish boots on the ground in the Gaza Strip. And this is no doubt one of the reasons why the sudden (sixth!) invitation extended from the White House to the Israeli prime minister to meet with Trump at the end of the month at his Florida resort. Rumor has it that Trump is also planning to invite Egyptian President Fattah Abdel el-Sisi to attend as well for an ad hoc “summit,” presumably to help in forging a deal between Turkey, Israel and Egypt that all players can accept.

Turkey desperately needs to establish a foothold in Gaza in order to position itself on either side of Israel. This would enable the Turkish brigade, comprising at least 2,000 soldiers, the options it requires to attack Israel after Trump leaves office in three years. That appears to be his overall plan—another Oct. 7-style attack—and Israel is quite aware of it this time around.

More disturbing is the fact that reports leaked to The Washington Post indicate that this international force is getting bigger and bigger with each passing day. The apparent goal is to consist of up to three brigades, perhaps 15,000 troops. Another source reported that the international stabilization force could include as many as 20,000 soldiers. On the face of it, it appears that the Gaza Strip is up for sale to the highest bidders willing to deploy soldiers there. At the same time, there isn’t a country in the world willing to deploy soldiers to fight Hamas directly in order to disarm them.

Everyone wants influence, but no one wants risk.

And if Netanyahu holds fast and doesn’t cave in to pressures, what options does Erdoğan have? He could theoretically threaten to leverage Turkey’s NATO membership. As a key NATO member with the alliance’s second-largest military, along with control over strategic straits and airbases (Incirlik Air Base, for instance), Ankara holds considerable geopolitical importance. Erdoğan could slow down or even block other US or NATO initiatives as a bargaining chip, though it’s doubtful that he would go through with that since he needs to retain what’s left of his international standing with the West.

The Turkish president is feeling more and more a sense of urgency regarding his involvement in Gaza, and is in a race against time to get this issue resolved. You can almost feel the desperation in the air as Turkish aid organizations are already circulating images of their representatives holding Turkish flags, assisting in clearing rubble, providing medical aid and distributing food in the Palestinian enclave—attempts to manufacture the perception of an on-the-ground role that Ankara has not actually secured.

According to Israeli officials, in the meantime, Turkey and Qatar are working to prevent a scenario in which Israel can declare a decisive victory over Hamas. It aligns perfectly with Obama-era doctrine—carried forward by the Biden administration and embraced by much of the United Nations and the European Union—to “level the playing field” in the Middle East, no matter how malign the other actors may be. “Israel must not be allowed to win!” This is the quiet mantra of Western progressives, and more often than not, the reason behind the now-predictable international demands for ceasefires designed to stop Israeli victories before they can be realized.

At the end of the day, Erdoğan’s worries about being humiliated are real. If he can’t get into Gaza, all of his propaganda, conferences and public statements are, for all intents and purposes, worthless. After all, when it comes right down to it, politics is perception. Turkey wants to take control of the Strip as a first step to reinstating Erdoğan’s delusional dream of re-establishing a neo-Ottoman Empire, thereby taking the reins from Iran to reclaim Sunni leadership of the Muslim world.

Hostility toward Israel carries its own consequences; few moments demonstrate this principle more vividly than the shocking televised collapse of Turkish Parliament member Hasan Bitmez. Two years ago this week, during a parliamentary session, he accused his colleagues of weakness on Israel and then proclaimed that the Jewish nation would “suffer Allah’s wrath.” No sooner had he said that, literally seconds later, he had a heart attack and fell to the floor—mid-sentence, mid-curse on live TV. The 54-year-old politician died two days later in the hospital.

Perhaps Erdoğan should take heart.

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