Erdoğan: War criminals belong in court, not at UN

ISTANBUL

President Erdoğan spoke at the 21st MÜSİAD EXPO International Trade Fair. (AA Photo)

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Sept. 26 that war criminals “belong in courtrooms rather than at the U.N. rostrum,” referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“War criminals belong not at the U.N. rostrum, but in courtrooms where they will answer for the crimes they have committed and the blood they have shed,” Erdoğan said at business forum in Istanbul.

“We are determined to unmask the occupying Zionist mentality that considers itself chosen and superior to all other people and has no compassion, conscience, morality or principles,” he added.

“If those committing genocide are not held accountable before justice and history, the same atrocities will happen again.”

Erdoğan cited the death of 6-year-old Hind Rajab, who was killed in 2024 along with members of her family in Gaza, and said those responsible for the deaths of civilians in food queues, incubators, mosques, schools and hospitals will ultimately face justice.

“The Palestinian people are not alone or abandoned,” he said. “Our sisters and brothers in Gaza are not alone in their quest for rights and justice.

Erdoğan praised diplomatic delegations that walked out of the General Assembly hall during addresses by certain leaders, primarily Netanyahu, hailing their actions as a principled response to those he accuses of committing genocide.

“We will continue, to the best of our ability, to tell the truth and be the voice of the oppressed,” he added.

Erdoğan further said the region with Türkiye at its center is facing a “full-blown storm of crises,” while the global system is facing an impasse in terms of “legitimacy, representation and justice.”

He said the effects of regional crises are being felt across multiple sectors, including trade, energy supplies, food security and economic sanctions.

“Issues that were resolved in the recent past through exchanges of ideas are now being addressed through exchanges of missiles and drones,” he said, warning that the principle of “might makes right” is increasingly shaping international relations.

In his address this week to the 81st U.N. General Assembly, Erdoğan said Türkiye had stressed that no solution to crises from Palestine to Yemen, Sudan, Somalia or Iran could succeed without peace, justice and common sense.

Turning to technological developments, Erdoğan said artificial intelligence is reshaping both personal and professional life, with advances in AI models and robotics directly affecting production and consumption.

He highlighted the benefits of AI across sectors ranging from healthcare and education to agriculture and the economy, while warning that technological progress without sufficient regard for human values can produce harmful consequences.

The president also called for deeper discussions of the issue involving governments, the private sector, academia, businesses and civil society.