Turkey would formally apply to participate in the South African genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Cuneyt Yuksel, the chairman of the Turkish Grand National Assembly’s Justice Committee, announced on Wednesday.
“After the decision to join [the case] is made by our esteemed President, we will submit our official application following legal work. As we have done until today, we will continue our efforts with determination to ensure the condemnation of Israel, which has been condemned by the conscience of humanity, and also in the eyes of the law.”
Yuksel stated that “the Palestinian issue, envisaged to be based on the rule of law and international law, is a matter that could even affect the sustainability of the current international order and lead to global consequences.” He added that Israel was blatantly violating the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
He expressed confidence that the ICJ would act in accordance with the principle that international law should apply equally to all without exception or privilege under any circumstances. The chairman of the justice committee also claimed that they expected the world court to reveal the genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by Israel and start the judgement process immediately.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan confirmed the country’s plans at a joint press conference with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi.
Turkey has decided to seek to join in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the ICJ. With this step, we hope that the process in front of the ICJ will progress in the right direction.
Israel has been conducting an offensive against the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on October 7 last year that killed some 1,200 people.
Gaza’s Health Ministry reports that since then, more than 34,500 Palestinians have been killed, with thousands more injured amid widespread destruction and a severe shortage of basic necessities.
