Turkey asks Interpol to issue Red Notices for Netanyahu over Gaza aid flotilla
Turkey’s justice minister announced that Ankara will seek Interpol red notices for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Afek Moskovitch over the 2025 interception of a humanitarian aid flotilla bound for Gaza.
Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek disclosed that Ankara is filing Interpol red-notice requests for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli citizen Afek Moskovitch, relating to Israel’s 2025 seizure of the Global Sumud Flotilla carrying humanitarian supplies to Gaza. The flotilla, launched in September 2025 with participants from over 40 nations, was intercepted in international waters, resulting in the detention of hundreds, including 48 Turkish activists.
Istanbul prosecutors have indicted Netanyahu and 34 other Israeli officials on charges such as genocide, crimes against humanity, and aggravated robbery. The Turkish court ordered the Interpol request as part of the ongoing trial, while Israel’s prime-ministerial office and foreign ministry have not responded. The move occurs amid escalating Turkey-Israel friction, highlighted by Israel’s recent strike on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur air base near the Turkish border. Earlier Turkish courts also sought arrest warrants for Netanyahu, though they lacked practical effect without his presence in Turkey.
Why it matters
The request could expose Netanyahu to arrest abroad and intensify diplomatic tensions between Turkey and Israel.
How this story developed
- Aug 15 Israeli air strike destroys house in southern Lebanon, killing seven
- Aug 16 Death toll rose to 11 after a second strike in Deir al‑Zahrani killed four people.
- Aug 18 Eight Israeli missiles hit the Abu al-Duhur military airbase in northwestern Syria, damaging the runway and storage areas, but no one was injured.
- Aug 18 U.S. General Michael Clearfield met Lebanon’s defence minister to discuss the recent escalation.
- Aug 18 Israeli officials have not responded to inquiries about the strike.
- Aug 18 U.S. officials announced plans for a deconfliction mechanism among the three states involved in the strike.
- Aug 19 The presidency denied claims of an imminent troop deployment to the base.
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