Israeli president, US secretary of state discuss Gaza war, ICJ case against Tel Aviv

By Zehra Nur Duz and Mahmoud Barakat

ANKARA (AA) – Israeli President Isaac Herzog and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday held a meeting in Tel Aviv where they discussed the war on Gaza and the war crimes case against Israel in the International Court of Justice.

The meeting came shortly after Blinken arrived in Israel amid a regional tour, according to a statement by the Israeli Presidency.

Herzog expressed gratefulness for Blinken’s fourth visit during the Gaza war and his “steadfast commitment to Israel’s safety” and thanked the US administration for its support to Israel.

He touched on a genocide proceeding slated to start on Thursday in the International Court of Justice in The Hague in a case lodged by South Africa against Tel Aviv.

“We will be there at the International Court of Justice and will present proudly our case of using self-defense under our most inherent right under humanitarian international law,” Herzog told reporters.

Herzog noted that Israel is doing its “utmost in extremely complicated circumstances on the ground to make sure that there will be no unintended consequences and no civilian casualties.”

Blinken, for his part, said: “As always, we greatly value the Israeli President’s leadership in these incredibly challenging times for Israel, for countries in the region, and especially for people who continue to suffer.”

Underlining that he has visited several countries in the region, including Türkiye, Greece, Jordan, Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia as part of his recent tour to the Middle East, Blinken said: “I want to be able to share some of what I heard from those leaders with President Herzog as well as with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Cabinet later today.”

Blinken noted that during his visit to Israel, he will also have an opportunity to sit with the families of some of the hostages and discuss the US’ “relentless” efforts to bring everyone home and back with their families.

Blinken, on his fourth mission to the region since October, also met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others.

The visit seeks to prevent the offensive in Gaza from turning into a wider regional conflict, urge Israel to decrease the number of casualties in Gaza, increase humanitarian aid and ensure that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced from the enclave.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, killing more than 23,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injuring nearly 59,000 others, according to local health authorities.

Israel says 1,200 people were killed in the initial Hamas incursion, and that Palestinian groups still hold more than 100 hostages.

The onslaught has left Gaza in ruins, with 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure damaged or destroyed and nearly 2 million residents displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicines.

Israel, which has so far rejected growing calls for a cease-fire, is said to be under pressure from the US to scale back the assault.