Turkish lawmaker who suffered heart attack after saying 'will suffer the wrath of Allah' dies

The Turkish lawmaker who collapsed from a heart attack while on the floor of parliament Tuesday after he said Israel "will suffer the wrath of Allah" died Thursday. 

Hasan Bitmez, 54, served in the Turkish parliament as a member of the Saadet Party, a party mostly supported by conservative Muslims. He gave a 22 minute speech on Tuesday against Israel as he stood behind a banner calling Israel a murderer and accusing President Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling AK Party of being collaborators. 

"You have the blood of Palestinians on your hands, you are collaborators. You contribute to every bomb Israel drops on Gaza," he told lawmakers during his speech, adding that Israel "will suffer the wrath of Allah," according to The New York Post. 

He concluded with, "Salutations to all," before falling backward and remaining motionless on the ground as other MPs rushed to his side and he was taken to the hospital.

Less than two days later, Bitmez died, according to Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency. He is survived by his wife and child.

Israel and Turkey have normalized relations, but they have worsened since Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists invaded Israel, killing about 1,200 people and leading to a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 18,000 people, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatant and civilian casualties. 

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