A Turkish parliamentary delegation that is following the South African genocide case against Israel urged for the process to be completed urgently as the war in Gaza stretches into its 100th day with the humanitarian toll deepening.
Cüneyt Yüksel, chair of the Parliamentary Justice Committee and a Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Istanbul deputy, on behalf of the delegation, welcomed the intensive interest by the international community in the public hearings in the case and noted the presence of growing awareness of international public opinion.
"We welcome the application made by South Africa to the ICJ," he said, referring to the International Court of Justice. "On behalf of the Turkish people, we once again declare our support for this process."
"We would like this process to be completed as soon as possible. As South Africa had also requested the court grant provisional measures requiring Israel to cease its attacks on Gaza, we ask the ICJ to grant this provisional measure."
Yüksel expressed confidence that the ICJ will thoroughly evaluate the case and conclude as quickly as possible.
On the first day of the trial on Thursday, South Africa presented hard evidence in the case it filed on Dec. 29 that accused Israel of genocide and violations of the U.N. Genocide Convention with its actions in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7.
South Africa is requesting an injunction by the top U.N. court to halt Israel's military assault on Gaza, which has dragged on for more than three months.
The 84-page filing accuses Israel of acts and omissions "genocidal in character, as they are committed with the requisite specific intent ... to destroy Palestinians in Gaza as a part of the broader Palestinian national, racial and ethnical group."
It said Israel's genocidal acts include killing Palestinians, causing them serious bodily and mental harm, mass expulsion from homes and displacement, imposing measures intended to prevent Palestinian births, and deprivation of access to adequate food, water, shelter, sanitation and medical assistance.
On Friday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that Ankara "closely" follows the case.
"We are very concerned with the reports that Israel's war crimes may amount to genocide and are closely following the hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over Israel's breaches of the 1948 Genocide Convention," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncu Keçeli said in a statement.
"Israeli occupation, Israeli expansionist mentality and actions that completely ignore human rights, international law and moral principles have led to the catastrophic situation in Gaza," he said.
Israel has bombarded the Gaza Strip from the air and land, imposed a siege and mounted a ground offensive in retaliation for a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.
At least 23,708 Palestinians have been killed and 60,005 injured in the Israeli onslaught since then, according to Gaza's health authorities.
The revised death toll in Israel from the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks stands at 1,200.