Istanbul [Turkey], November 9: An Istanbul court on Friday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and 36 other members of his government for alleged crimes against humanity and genocide relating to the conflict in the Gaza Strip, state news agency Anadolu reported.
The Istanbul chief public prosecutor's office justified the arrest warrants by stating that "Israeli State officials bear criminal responsibility for the systematic acts of 'crimes against humanity' and 'genocide' committed in Gaza, as well as for the actions carried out against the Global Sumud Fleet."
Prosecutors said that, as a result of these crimes, thousands of people, including women and children, lost their lives, while thousands more have been injured and residential areas had been rendered uninhabitable.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly accused Netanyahu of committing "genocide" in Gaza.
Ankara played a key role in brokering the recent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, though the truce has since become fragile.
Israel has repeatedly been accused of war crimes and, in some cases, genocide over its actions in the Gaza Strip, accusations which Israel rejects. The International Criminal Court's (ICC) in November 2024 issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu and former Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant over allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza war.
Source: Qatar Tribune