The issuance of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is a courageous step, and Ankara supports it, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
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The International Criminal Court last week issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Galant for alleged war crimes in the Gaza Strip. The court also rejected arguments by Israel, which sought to challenge the court’s jurisdiction to issue warrants against its citizens. Israel also challenged the ICC’s jurisdiction to hear cases related to the situation in Palestine as a whole.
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“The issuance of arrest warrants against (Binyamin) Netanyahu and his former defense minister is a very bold step in this direction. The circle is getting narrower for Netanyahu and his gang. In this regard, we consider it admirable that the majority of countries obliged to comply with this decision , expressed their support. Like Turkey, we support the courageous decision taken by the criminal court,” Erdogan said in an address to the people after a cabinet meeting on Monday.
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On October 7, 2023, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. After this, Hamas militants infiltrated the border areas, opened fire on military and civilians, and took more than 200 hostages. According to the authorities, about 1.2 thousand people died on the Israeli side.
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In response, the Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Iron Swords, which included attacks on civilian targets, and announced a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip: supplies of water, electricity, fuel, food and medicine were stopped. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, since the beginning of the conflict, more than 43.5 thousand Palestinians have been killed and over 102 thousand injured.
