Representatives of several countries, including Türkiye, left the gathering hall as Israel’s president began his speech at an Asian security summit in Baku, Azerbaijan's capital.

As Isaac Herzog began his speech around noon on Thursday at the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) summit, representatives of more than 10 countries, including Türkiye, walked out of the gathering hall.

Türkiye’s delegation, led by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, along with representatives of 10 other countries, walked out of the room while the Israeli president was addressing the CICA summit in Baku, TRT World reported.

A similar walkout was seen at September’s UN General Assembly high-level week in New York during a speech by Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister.

Thursday’s one-day summit, hosted by Azerbaijan as the current CICA chair, is bringing together representatives of member states, observer countries, and partner international organisations.

Discussions will focus on regional cooperation, connectivity, digitalisation, and sustainable development under Azerbaijan's chairmanship.

The summit is expected to adopt a Baku declaration and a statement on cooperation in occupational safety and health, as well as announce Laos' accession as a new member.

Fidan later said that Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) member states must take a firm stance in supporting the rights of Palestine, which is among the group’s members, as well as in opposing ongoing oppression and grave violations.

Since October 2023, more than 74,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 175,000 wounded in Gaza in Israel’s genocide, while around 90 percent of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed.

Israeli raids and attacks by illegal Israeli settlers against Palestinians and their property have also intensified in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since then.