At U.N., Turkey to press criticism of Israel over Gaza war

23/9/2024 18:52

        Turkey, among the world's sharpest critics of the Israeli military operation in Gaza, will use the U.N. General Assembly this week to highlight what it says is a genocide unfolding there and will urge international pressure on Israel.
        
        President Tayyip Erdogan and several Turkish ministers will take part in the General Assembly in New York, which comes amid the heaviest cross-border fire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon, alongside the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
        
        NATO member Turkey has condemned Israel's military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which came in retaliation for Palestinian militant group Hamas' cross-border attack on Oct. 7 last year. Turkey halted all trade with Israel and applied to join a genocide case against Israel at the World Court.
        
        Israel has repeatedly dismissed the genocide case as baseless, arguing in the court that its operations in Gaza are self-defence and target Gaza's ruling Hamas group.
        
        Erdogan addresses the assembly on Tuesday and plans to underscore what he described as the "ongoing genocide in Gaza" and repeat his call to reform the U.N. structure to be more inclusive, a Turkish diplomatic source said.