ICJ will find that Israeli attacks on Gaza constitute genocide: Erdogan

Türkiye expects that in its imminent verdict, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will find that Israeli attacks on Gaza constitute “genocide,” the country’s president has said.

"I believe that as a result of our follow-up, positive results will come from both the Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters on Friday in Istanbul after Friday prayers.

The initial ruling in a case arguing that Israel’s attacks on Gaza violate the UN Convention on Genocide is set to be announced on Friday at 1300 Türkiye time (1200GMT) by the world court in The Hague.

South Africa, which brought the case, asked the court to rule on interim measures, including that Israel immediately cease its military operations in Palestine's Gaza, take reasonable measures to prevent the genocide of Palestinians, and ensure that displaced people return to their homes and have access to humanitarian assistance.

Türkiye for months has been pressing the international community to do more to end Israel’s deadly attacks on besieged Gaza and restore the flow of food, medicine, and all needed supplies to the 2 million residents of the enclave.

Israel launched a deadly offensive on the besieged city in the wake of an October 7 attack by Palestinian group Hamas. The Israeli bombardment has killed 26,083 Palestinians and injured 64,487 others. Nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli war has left 85% of Gaza’s population internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while more than half of the enclave’s infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.