Bogota, Colombia, 10 Nov 2023 (Anadolu News)

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on Friday that the government’s legal teams “are preparing lawsuits to file before all international courts” against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

It is not the first time that Petro has threatened to sue Israel since the conflict began in Gaza. Petro had already announced that “Colombia will help” the complaint that Algeria will file before the International Criminal Court “for war crimes committed by Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu,” within the framework of the war with the Islamist group Hamas.

“Colombia’s Foreign Minister will meet tomorrow with the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court,” Petro said in a message published on X on Thursday.

The president of Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune has asked human rights defenders to bring Israel before the International Criminal Court for the “crimes he is committing against Palestinians in Gaza”.

“I urge all free men in the world, Arab jurists and human rights organizations and agencies to file a complaint before the International Criminal Court and international human rights organizations against the Israeli entity, to put an end to decades of impunity for crimes committed against Palestinians,” Tebboune said on Monday.

The Colombian president has condemned the Israel attacks on Gaza on his social media and in his speeches and has even threatened to suspend relations with that country.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Oct. 7.

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune warned that “full-fledged war crimes” are being committed in Gaza.

“What is happening in Gaza is full-fledged war crimes,” Algerian state-run TV quoted Tebboune as saying during a meeting with citizens, civil society organizations, and officials in Djelfa province last Sunday.

“The Palestinians are not terrorists because they defend their homeland and their rights,” Tebboune explained, citing the example of the fighters of the Algerian revolution against French colonialism (1954-1962), who were described at the time as “terrorists” by France.

Israeli authorities continue to impose strict restrictions on Palestinians, banning them from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem for Friday prayers for the fifth consecutive week.

However, an official with the Waqf Department in Jerusalem told Anadolu that only 4,000 Palestinians, the majority of whom were elderly, had managed to reach Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the Friday prayers.

The official, who preferred not to be named, added that the mosque appeared to be empty due to Israeli strict control of the streets.

Since early Friday morning, Israeli forces have been heavily deployed across occupied East Jerusalem, particularly in the Old City and the entrances leading to the mosque.

Hundreds of Palestinians were forced to perform Friday prayers in the streets near the Old City area after being barred from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque.

The Israeli side did not comment on the reasons for restricting Muslims’ access to Al-Aqsa Mosque for prayers.

The Israeli army has widened its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip, which has been under relentless airstrikes since the surprise offensive by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 11,078 Palestinians have been killed, including 4,506 children and 3,027 women. The Israeli death toll, meanwhile, is nearly 1,600, according to official figures.

An Irish member of the European Parliament on Friday Clare Daly criticized European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for not calling for a truce in Gaza, where Israeli bombardment has killed over 11,000 Palestinians.

“With European and American weapons, and European and American support. Still @vonderleyen cannot even say the word: ‘ceasefire.’ This isn’t just Israel’s genocide. It’s Europe’s too.”

Clare Daly said that “You can’t even call for it to stop. You can’t even call for a cease-fire. Well, of course, you cannot. Because these crimes against humanity are being carried out with your weapons, in your name.

“So do not come in here trying to wipe the blood off with belated concern. It’s not just Israel’s genocide. It’s yours and The Hague isn’t good enough for you,” she said.