Erdoğan pledges legal action over Gaza, draws parallel to Srebrenica

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Saturday pledged to seek justice for slain Turkish American activist Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi and over 41,000 Gazan civilians, comparing the situation in Gaza to the notorious 1995 Srebrenica genocide.  

At a joint press conference with Denis Becirovic, chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, held on the day Eygi was laid to rest in her hometown in Didim, Türkiye, Erdoğan said: "In courts of law, we will hold Israel accountable for the killing of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, along with over 41,000 of our Gazan brothers and sisters."

Stressing the severity of the situation, he said: "Today we are witnessing in Gaza and (other) occupied Palestinian territories a massacre similar to the one carried out in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s."

Erdoğan also added that the "perpetrators of Gaza," like the people behind the Srebrenica genocide, will be held accountable in international courts.

"Just as the perpetrators of the Srebrenica Genocide were convicted in international courts, those responsible for what is happening in Gaza will also be held accountable under international law," he said.

The United Nations General Assembly has declared 11 July 1995, as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Srebrenica Genocide, and Türkiye supported this decision as a co-sponsor, he said.

Türkiye has always stood by Bosnia and Herzegovina since the declaration of its independence and will continue to do so, he said.

About the regional issues, and the ties between Türkiye and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Erdoğan emphasized Ankara's continued support for Bosnia's territorial integrity and peace in the Balkans, noting the significance of their bilateral relationship.