Chicago – November 08, 2025
Turkey on Friday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and dozens of other Israeli officials on “genocide” charges.
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said it has issued warrants against 37 people. Besides Netanyahu, warrants target Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and military chief Eyal Zamir, among others.
The warrants charge the Israeli officials with “crimes against humanity” and “genocide” committed in Gaza and against the flotilla carrying aid to the enclave, according to the prosecutor’s office. That flotilla was intercepted by Israeli authorities last month.
Israel was quick to condemn and reject the warrants.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called the move a “PR stunt” by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
“In Erdoğan’s Turkey, the judiciary has long since become a tool for silencing political rivals and detaining journalists, judges, and mayors,” Sa’ar said in a social media post, referring to the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu earlier this year. Imamoglu, a key Erdogan rival, was arrested in March as part of corruption and terrorism investigations.
Hamas welcomed the warrants, saying the move “confirms the noble positions of the Turkish people and its leadership.”
