ISTANBUL

Türkiye's communications director on Monday marked the first anniversary of the Israeli "genocide" in Gaza with a strong condemnation, urging the international community to take action.

"Israel has been conducting genocide and blocking people from accessing even their most basic needs, resulting in the deaths of nearly 50,000 Palestinians," Fahrettin Altun said on X.

He described Israel's yearlong campaign in Gaza as "one of the greatest oppressions in recent history," vowing that the brutality "will not go unpunished."

Altun said that Israel has been committing massacres disregarding principles, morals, or boundaries, and indiscriminately targeting civilians, the innocent, healthcare workers, and journalists."

"Israel will eventually be held accountable for these atrocities," he added.

Altun reaffirmed Türkiye’s stance, saying: "Under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, we will continue to stand with the innocent and oppose oppression."

"With its bombs, Israel has been killing not only over 42,000 Palestinians but also destroying humanity's belief in justice and hopes for coexistence," Türkiye's Communications Directorate said on X.

On the plight of over 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, the directorate described the region as an "open-air prison," urging the global community to act.

"Even if the whole world turns a deaf ear to cries and turns its back on the innocent, Türkiye will never stop being the voice of conscience in the face of oppression, healing the wounds, and taking every step to ensure justice prevails," the directorate added.

Israel has continued its relentless offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last October, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.

Since then, nearly 42,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed, with over 97,100 others injured, according to local health authorities.

The ongoing Israeli onslaught has displaced almost the entire population of the Gaza Strip, exacerbating shortages of food, clean water, and medicine due to a long-standing blockade.

Israel is currently facing genocide charges at the International Court of Justice over its actions in Gaza.