Turkey issues international arrest warrant for Netanyahu

Turkey has issued an international arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and against an Israeli citizen, Afek Moskovitch. Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek announced this on X on Friday.

The warrant stems from the investigation Turkey opened into the interception of the Gaza flotilla and the detention of the activists on board. According to the Turkish justice ministry, Netanyahu and Moskovitch are being prosecuted for "crimes against humanity, genocide, aggravated deprivation of liberty, intentional bodily harm, torture, destruction of property, aggravated looting and misappropriation of means of transport."

The boarding of the flotilla

About 430 crew members were on board the roughly fifty vessels boarded by the Israeli army in the Mediterranean, west of Cyprus. They were forcibly taken to Israel and held in Ktziot prison before being deported last May.

The activists were part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which had set out from Turkey with the aim of breaking the naval blockade imposed by Israel and drawing attention to the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, devastated by more than two years of war. It was not the first such mission stopped by Israel: in April, a previous flotilla bound for Gaza had already been intercepted off Greece.

The Turkish warrant adds to another international proceeding already open against Netanyahu. In 2024, the International Criminal Court had issued an arrest warrant against the Israeli prime minister for war crimes and crimes against humanity related to the conflict in Gaza.