The war of words between Turkey and Israel continued Friday when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rebuked the son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for suggesting that Istanbul � formerly Constantinople � was under Turkish occupation.

The Turkish and Israeli leaders have been trading barbs this week, with Netanyahu calling Erdogan a �dictator� and criticizing the imprisonment of scores of journalists in Turkey. Erdogan brandished the Israeli leader a �thief� and a �tyrant� in reference to corruption allegations and Israeli policies toward Palestinians.

Netanyahu�s son, Yair Netanyahu, jumped into the fray, tweeting this week that Istanbul �is actually a city called Constantinople! The capital of the Byzantine empire and center of orthodox Christianity for more than a thousand years before Turkish occupation!�

Erdogan hit back at Yair Netanyahu calling him �immoral� at an election rally.

�You occupied the whole of Palestine!� he said. �If the world is looking for a country that oppresses, it�s Israel. If they are searching for a terror state that too is Israel.�

Forgot to mention also these days turkey is committing genocide to the Kurds. And occupying northern Cyprus.

— Yair Netanyahu?? (@YairNetanyahu) March 15, 2019

Israel and Turkey were once close allies, but diplomatic relations between the two have soured in the past decade. Under Erdogan, Turkey has become a vocal critic of Israeli policies dealing with Palestinians, sparking frequent verbal feuds with Netanyahu.

Interviewed on Turkey�s Haberturk television on Thursday, Erdogan said Benjamin Netanyahu was �walking around with this stain� of corruption. Erdogan also accused Israel of jailing 10,000 Palestinian women and children and of disrespecting holy sites in Jerusalem.

The latest exchange of words started Tuesday when Erdogan�s spokesman called Netanyahu a racist for saying Israel was the nation-state only of the Jewish people.

(AP)