Parliamentary rights commission plans Gaza visit

ANKARA

The Turkish parliament's Human Rights Commission has announced plans to visit the Gaza Strip to investigate human rights violations amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.

In a press statement following a meeting on Oct. 24, commission head Derya Yanık expressed "deep concern over the continuous and intense attacks by Israel on the Gaza Strip, targeting civilian areas, settlements, marketplaces, schools, places of worship and hospitals from the air."

"We are following with great concern the human tragedy... that has occurred by blocking a tiny piece of land from land, air and sea, where approximately 1.5 million people are virtually trapped," said Yanık, a lawmaker from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

Ensuring the safety of Palestinian and Israeli civilians, as well as hostages from both sides, is a top priority for the commission, Yanık said.

"We invite the world public opinion, especially the United Nations, global nongovernmental organizations working in the field of human rights and democracy, all countries that claim to have human rights values and every institution and person who has a voice and influence in this field, to take action to stop Israeli brutality as soon as possible," she remarked.

The commission head announced that their visit to the Gaza region is aimed at "examining the human rights violations on-site."

"We, as the human rights investigation commission of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, will continue our contacts with international organizations, especially the U.N. Human Rights Committee, the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women and UNICEF, in order to contribute to the establishment of security and ceasefire in the region," Yanık stated.