Foreign Minister Fidan Announces Turkey Will Join In Cases Of Alleged Genocide Against Israel At ICJ

Israeli military illustration in Gaza. (Source: Israel Defense Forces)

JAKARTA - Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Wednesday Turkey would officially participate in the alleged genocide case by Israel in Gaza filed by South Africa at the International Court (ICJ).

Foreign Minister Fidan said that so far only two countries, Nicaragua and Colombia, have taken concrete steps on the matter and submitted a request to an international court.

"We convey our assessment to the President and today, I declare Turkey's political decision so far. We hope that the process in front of the ICJ can go well," he said, launching Daily Sabah on May 1.

Foreign Minister Fidan noted that Ankara was working on the petition and would soon resolve the legal framework regarding the matter.

"After the legal text is compiled, we will submit our official application," he explained.

Foreign Minister Fidan explained that they will continue to work with friendly countries and allies on what else can be done, convincing other countries to join them in this trial.

"Turkey will always support the Palestinian people," he stressed.

Turkey is known to have been a staunch defender of the Palestinian struggle, continuing diplomatic and legal efforts to resolve the conflict.

Delegations consisting of 15 Turkish legal experts recently submitted documents to The Hague containing Israel's list of war crimes. They cited evidence obtained at the scene of Gaza, including notary testimony from the injured victims, civilians living there who were interviewed by telephone and information from journalists who are currently on duty in the enclave and witnessed Israeli attacks live.

"In the 21st century, many people were dying from hunger in Gaza. Mass graves were found in places where Israeli forces withdrew. Women, children, patients, the elderly were targeted indiscriminately. It was time to take action (forcing Israel to stop). Both Palestinians, Turks, and other countries fighting for justice will not accept Israel's efforts to surround the Palestinian people and expel them from their lands," he explained.

"We are faced with a choice. We will side with law and humanity, or we will suffer the consequences together for the problems caused by this oppression. I once again warn countries that support Israel's crimes and endanger international systems and security," he added.

Foreign Minister Fidan underlined that Israel must stand trial for its attacks on Gaza.

"We welcome South Africa's request to the ICJ and President Erdogan instructed us to find ways to get involved in this case. We discussed it with our legal experts and launched a careful research process to be part of the trial on the South African side. We exchanged views with other countries on how to engage them in this process, to encourage them to join (we)," he said.

He noted that more countries may take a stand on this issue, based on his observations at a summit of the Organizations of Islamic Cooperation (OKI) and the Saudi Arabian League recently on Gaza.