TURKEY MAY ACCUSE ISRAEL OF PALESTINIAN GENOCIDE

PanARMENIAN.Net
06.02.2009 19:15 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ A Turkish prosecutor has launched an investigation
into whether Israel committed genocide and crimes against humanity
in its offensive in Gaza, his office said.

The investigation follows a complaint lodged by the Islamist-leaning
human rights association Mazlum-Der against several Israeli officials,
including President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Foreign
Minister Tzipi Livni, Defence Minister Ehud Barak and army chief of
staff Gabi Ashkenazi.

"Every complaint merits an investigation," the spokesman said when
asked whether a probe had been launched into Mazlum-Der’s complaint.

Under Turkish law, prosecutors are obliged to look into all complaints
to determine whether there are grounds to initiate a full-scale
investigation that could lead to formal charges. If the prosecutor
decides the complaint does not merit a case, it will be dismissed.

In its petition, Mazlum-Der accused Israel of carrying out "direct
attacks on civilians with the aim of annihilating them" and employing
internationally-banned weapons in the process.

"The suspects, who wanted to wipe out the Palestinian people through
systematic attacks, have committed genocide and crimes against
humanity," it said, demanding that the suspects be detained if they
enter Turkey.

Turkish law allows for the trial of people accused of genocide or
crimes against humanity even if the crimes were committed abroad,
the AFP reports.

Israel’s 22-day offensive last month on Islamist Hamas-controlled
Gaza left more than 1,300 Palestinians dead and injured 5,300
others. Thirteen Israelis were killed during the operation which was
launched with the declared aim of stopping rocket attacks on southern
Israel by Palestinian militants.

Turkey, one of the few Muslim allies of Israel, harshly criticized
the Jewish State over the war in Gaza amid almost daily anti-Israel
demonstrations across the country.