Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his hope that the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, deeming the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories illegal, would constitute an “awakening of the international community.”
This came in statements to journalists on board the plane during his return from the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus after his participation on Saturday in the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the “military peace process.”
The Turkish President explained that international justice considered Israel an occupying state of the Palestinian territories and demanded that it end the occupation.
He added: “The International Court of Justice also ruled that Israel be compensated, but they have not announced the amount yet… Israel has not implemented any of the decisions of the International Court of Justice so far because the West stands by its side, especially the United States.”
On Friday, the International Court of Justice held a public hearing in The Hague regarding the United Nations General Assembly’s request for the court to issue a fatwa on the legal consequences of Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem.
The International Court of Justice said that “the continued presence of the State of Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory is illegal,” stressing that the Palestinians have the “right to self-determination” and that “the Israeli settlements existing on the occupied territories must be evacuated.”
