International Court of Justice Hears Gaza Strip Genocide Case Against Israel
Image Source: Al Jazeera
The UN’s highest court heard South Africa’s accusations of genocide by Israel in its ongoing war in the Gaza strip, as the South African government submitted its case to the International Court of Justice, also known as the World Court of Hague, on December 29th.
As the Israeli offenders have claimed over 23,000 lives in Gaza till date, according to the latest figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health in its 84-page written filing, South Africa claimed that it “seeks an expected hearing” and is “making the present application to establish Israel’s responsibility for violations of the Genocide Convention; to hold it fully accountable under international law for those violations; and – most immediately – to have recourse to this Court to ensure the urgent and fullest possible protection for Palestinians in Gaza who remain at grave and immediate risk of continuing and further acts of genocide.”
Israel has dismissed the suit as “blood libel” – a term that describes false and antisemitic accusations of bloodletting levied against Jewish people, and Israel is scheduled to respond to the allegations at the ICJ on Friday.
Critics of Israel’s Gaza strip campaign have questioned the proportionality of its response and the number of civilian casualties because of the siege. However, Israel is maintaining that it is at war with Hamas, rather than the Palestinian people. It accuses Hamas of weaponizing the civilian population as human shields and deliberately locating its spiderweb of underground tunnels under non-combatant sites in Gaza territories, such as hospitals and schools.
The Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Petra De Sutter telegraphed the intentions for her country to echo South Africa’s position. “I want Belgium to take action at the International Court of Justice, following the lead of South Africa,” she added, pledging to propose this measure with the Belgian government. “Belgium cannot stand by and watch the immense human suffering in Gaza; we must act against the threat of genocide.” The UK has signaled concerns over the Israeli campaign: “Am I worried that Israel has taken action against what might be a breach of international law, because this particular premise has been bombed, or whatever… yes, of course, I am worried about that,” UK Foreign Minister David Cameron said.
Ahead of Thursday’s proceedings, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu laid out his country’s aims in the Gaza strip: “Israel has no intention of permanently occupying Gaza or displacing its civilian population,” Netanyahu said in a video address released in his office.
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