Turkish president says to bring leaders responsible for killings in Gaza to int'l courts

ANKARA, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday that efforts are being made to send the political and military leaders responsible for the mass killing of Gaza civilians to the international courts for trial.

Erdogan made the remarks at a parliamentary group meeting of his ruling Justice and Development Party in the Turkish capital of Ankara.

He accused Israel, who launched an indiscriminate strike on Gaza, of breaking the first rule of the laws of war, under which children, women, the elderly and the sick should not be harmed.

The president noted that thousands of Turkish lawyers are making efforts to take all necessary steps to bring related political and military leaders to the International Court of Justice for committing mass killings.

Erdogan added that he would also talk to the leaders of countries who abstained from voting on an immediate humanitarian truce in Gaza at the United Nations.

Türkiye and Israel have recalled their respective ambassadors after the Turkish government strongly condemned Israel over the attacks on civilians of Gaza.

Türkiye and Israel are normalizing their relations after years of enmity. The ties between the two countries were strained in 2010 when a Turkish-led flotilla attempting to break Israel's blockade on the Gaza Strip clashed with Israeli forces, killing 10 Turks on board. In 2022, Türkiye and Israel fully restored their diplomatic ties and re-appointed respective ambassadors.