UN’s ICJ tells Israel to prevent genocide in Gaza
…Stops short of ordering cease-fire
The U.N.’s International Court of Justice has ordered Israel to “take all measures in its power” to prevent genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip but stopped short of ordering a cease-fire in the embattled territory.
The preliminary ruling delivered Friday by the 17-judge ICJ ordered Israel to enable the provision of basic services and humanitarian assistance in Gaza, where most of the territory’s 2.3 million people are struggling to find adequate food and shelter after three months of fighting between Israel and militant group Hamas.
The case was brought to the court by South Africa, which argued that Israel is violating the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention, established in the aftermath of World War II and the Holocaust.
In presenting the ruling, Presiding Judge Joan Donoghue said preventing genocide, in accordance with the genocide convention, would include “preventing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group and deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to bring about the group’s physical destruction.”
Donoghue said as part of the ruling Israel must take immediate measures to “enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life.”
Israel has dismissed the allegations by South Africa as hypocritical and reflecting “a world turned upside down.” Israeli leaders defend their air and ground offensive in Gaza as a legitimate response to Hamas’ October 7 attack, when militants stormed through Israeli communities, killing some 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages.
Following the ruling, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the genocide claims as “outrageous” and vowed to press ahead with the war.
Palestinian officials largely hailed the decision. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said it was a welcome reminder that “no state is above the law.” Sami Abu Zuhri, a senior Hamas official, told Reuters the decision would contribute to “isolating the occupation and exposing its crimes in Gaza.”
The advocacy group Human Rights Watch applauded the ruling. In a statement, the group’s associate international justice director, Balkees Jarrah, said the ruling “puts Israel and its allies on notice that immediate action is needed to prevent genocide and further atrocities against Palestinians in Gaza.”
Jarrah said the “speedy” ruling is recognition of the dire situation in Gaza.
Provisional measures ordered by the world court are legally binding, but it is not clear if Israel will comply with them. The court, meanwhile, is expected to take years to rule on the full case of genocide brought by South Africa.
Sources : VOA with information provided by The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
