Turkey joins South Africa’s case against Israel

Turkey has filed an official request to join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague.

In a statement, the Turkish foreign ministry announced that it had decided to join the case—formally known as submitting a declaration of official intervention—and would make the necessary legal preparations.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said it had made the formal request on Wednesday.

“The international community must do its part to stop the genocide and exert the necessary pressure on Israel and its supporters,” Fidan said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

“Turkiye will make every effort to do so,” he added.

The court will make the final decision of admission to the case.

South Africa brought its case against Israel in December, accusing it of state-led genocide in Gaza.

To read more: All you need to know about South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at ICJ

However, in January, the ICJ ordered Israel to refrain from any acts that could fall under the Genocide Convention and to ensure its troops commit no genocidal acts against Palestinians.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that in January, Turkiye provided documents for the case at the ICJ, also known as the World Court. In June, Spain said it had asked to intervene in the case at the ICJ.

Israel has repeatedly dismissed the case’s accusations of genocide, claiming its right to self-defence after Oct 7 last year that killed 1,200 Israelis and foreigners. In 10 months of subsequent Israeli attack, more than 39,600 Palestinians have been martyred in Gaza. Hundreds of thousands are displaced, and most of the strip suffers from a humanitarian crisis.