Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York in Sep 20, 2023.
Netanyahu prepares for ICC case against Erdogan: i24
Note: AI technology was used to generate this article’s audio.
- The case targets Erdogan's military actions against Kurdish minorities and his government's financial support for Hamas.
- The move responds to Erdogan seeking an Interpol Red Notice for Netanyahu's arrest.
- Since neither belong to the ICC, 'Israel' aims to leverage the case as a deterrent, potentially submitting it via a proxy third party.
'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has instructed 'Israel's' inter-ministerial team and the Director of the International Law Department to begin preparing a legal case targeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to allegations reported Sunday by i24NEWS.
The reported directive comes amid escalating diplomatic and legal friction between the two governments.
According to i24NEWS, the decision followed an announcement by Turkish President Erdogan stating that Turkey had approached Interpol seeking a Red Notice for Netanyahu's arrest, which served as one of several recent escalations triggering 'Israel's' legal strategy.
Alleged Hamas financing, Kurdish minorities
According to the allegations published by i24NEWS, the draft case prepared by 'Israeli' legal teams would center primarily on Erdogan's military operations and policies targeting Kurdish minorities inside Turkey.
Additionally, the outlet reported that the case would encompass claims regarding the Turkish government's financial backing of Hamas.
Neither 'Israel' nor Turkey recognizes the authority of the ICC, as neither nation is a signatory to the court's founding treaty, the Rome Statute.
Proxy filing
i24NEWS reported that while 'Israel' could theoretically attempt to bring the case directly to the Hague-based tribunal, officials consider it far more likely that 'Israel' would utilize a third-party proxy nation that is a state party to the ICC to launch any formal proceedings.
However, sources cited by i24NEWS noted that 'Israel' hopes it will not actually be necessary to file the case before the court.
Instead, the reported strategy aims to leverage the existence of a fully prepared legal case as a deterrent against further legal or diplomatic actions initiated by Ankara.
Both Netanyahu and officials within 'Israel's' Justice Ministry declined to comment on the allegations reported by i24NEWS.
