Ismail Haniyeh was speaking in a Sunday meeting with Nelson Mandela's Grandson, Nkosi Zwelivelile Mandela, in the Turkish port city of Istanbul.
During the meeting, Haniyeh strongly condemned the horrendous crimes committed by the Israeli regime in its genocidal war on the besieged Gaza Strip.
He highlighted the international community’s responsibility with regard to the ongoing developments in Gaza, stressing that if justice is to be dispensed, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his terrorist cabinet members must be arrested for their criminal acts.
Haniyeh also praised South Africa's historic step to file a legal case against the occupying regime with the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.
South Africa's genocide case against Israel was filed at the end of December, after nearly three months of Israeli aggression against Palestinians in Gaza.
Before filing the lawsuit, the country stated that the occupying regime had failed to uphold its commitments under the 1948 Genocide Convention.
In its interim ruling on January 26, the top UN court ruled that Pretoria's claims were plausible, ordering provisional measures. The Hague-based court said the Israeli regime had to implement steps to prevent genocidal acts and allow humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Haniyeh thanked the people and government of South Africa for their unbridled support for the Palestinian cause.
He said the position taken by the country’s late leader, Nelson Mandela, on the Palestinian cause had genuine humanitarian and moral dimensions, and stood in stark contrast with the blind and biased support provided to Israel by the United States and some other Western countries.
Mandela, for his part, expressed his condolences on the martyrdom of Haniyeh’s sons and grandchildren.
He reaffirmed his country’s continued support for the Palestinian cause until the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with the occupied city of al-Quds as its capital.
Press TV