Turkey Submits ICJ Bid To Join South Africa In Genocide Case Against Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech following a cabinet meeting, in Ankara, on June 9, 2020.

Turkey on Wednesday formally submitted its bid to join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel over the Gaza war at the International Court of Justice, ICJ.

Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş made the announcement on social media platform X.

“We will continue our efforts to have Israel tried in international courts for the crime of genocide and to receive the harshest punishment it deserves for the crimes committed by Netanyahu and his gang,” Kurtulmuş wrote.

At the end of December, South Africa took Israel to the top UN court in The Hague for alleged violations of the Genocide Convention.

South Africa contends that Israel is committing “systematic” acts of genocide in Gaza, citing examples of military violence and statements by Israeli politicians and military brass.

Israel has denounced the lawsuit as “wholly unfounded.”

At the end of May, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to immediately end the controversial military operation in Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.

In addition to Turkey, several other countries, including Spain as the first EU country, have joined the lawsuit.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused Israel of “genocide” over its war against Hamas, the militant group which launched an unprecedented attack on October 7 that left some 1,200 people dead in Israel.

Erdoğan has good relations with Hamas.

Ten months on from Israel’s air and ground offensive, the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza says more than 39,600 people have died in the Palestinian territory.