A full year ago this week, I was in Ankara for a meeting. When Hamas launched its attacks on October 7, the Palestinian issue quickly became the main agenda. It became evident that Israel was facing significant security vulnerabilities, and there was much discussion about the timing of Hamas's actions. There was a consensus that Israel would respond disproportionately. It was clear that the conflict between Israel and Hamas was entering a new phase, and discussions were underway about the steps needed for a political resolution after the conflict. Looking back a year later, it’s hard to believe that no one expected Israel to shift into a "perpetual war" mode by rendering Gaza unlivable and extending the conflict to other countries.

The present Report examines Israel’s attacks from legal perspective depend ing on the relevant rules of international law. In this sense, the Report handles three main issues. The first is whether Israel’s attacks can be justified on the basis of the right to self-defense. The second concerns the violations of international humanitarian law and the related crimes resulting from the violations. Finally, the Report evaluates the ongoing judicial processes initiated against or related to Israel.

President Erdoğan dedicating a significant portion of his UN speech to Gaza highlighted not only the importance of the Palestinian issue for Türkiye but also its central role in regional peace and global governance. The moral clarity and call to action on this matter, which has been a recurring theme in Erdoğan’s past speeches, carried considerable weight. The UN, established to ensure international peace and security, has been paralyzed in addressing the Palestinian issue due to its structural problems and inability to move beyond great power rivalries, illustrating the crisis of the international order. Türkiye’s insistence on keeping the Palestinian issue on the global agenda is crucial for its national interests, regional balance, and the future of the international system.

While United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was calling for the restructuring of all institutions of international governance, including the U.N., in his opening speech at the 79th General Assembly, Israel was conducting its 800th air sortie against Lebanon and dropping its 2,000th bomb over Lebanon. In the aftermath of Israel’s ongoing attacks, reports state that more than 500 people, including 100 children, were killed in Lebanon.

Following the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Meeting between Türkiye and Egypt in Ankara on Sept. 4, 16 agreements were signed, and a 36-point joint declaration was issued. Ankara and Cairo had been at odds for nearly a decade following the bloody military coup led by Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in 2013 that removed Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s only democratic ruler, from power.

The Middle East is on fire and neither regional nor global actors do much to prevent further bloodshed in the region. Israel’s expansionist and supremacist policies in Palestine and in its periphery force all relevant actors into a regional war. The Israeli leadership knows well that none of the Western global actors dare to follow a deterrent policy against Israel. In addition, considering the deadly silence of the Arab world, there is no strong enough power that can prevent Israel from its genocidal military operations in the Gaza Strip and its brutal policies in the West Bank.