Judges started a hearing at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, on Jan. 12, 2024. The United Nations’ top court opened hearings into South Africa’s allegation that Israel’s war with Hamas amounts to genocide against Palestinians, a claim that Israel strongly denies.
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The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to deliver on Friday its much-anticipated ruling on the provisional measures requested by South Africa in its genocide case against Israel.
The court will not be pronouncing a final verdict on the merits of the genocide allegations, but will instead be ruling on the nine provisional measures requested by South Africa.
Notably, South Africa has requested an immediate suspension of military operations “in and against” the Gaza Strip and urged Israel to refrain from impeding the delivery of urgent humanitarian aid into the Palestinian enclave.
To issue a provisional measures order, the court must be satisfied that it has prima facie jurisdiction, that there is a “plausible” link between the rights asserted by South Africa and the measures it requests and a risk of irreparable harm and urgency.
However, whether Israel will choose to abide by an adverse provisional ruling is debatable since the court does not have any enforcement powers. For instance, in March 2022, the ICJ ordered Russia to halt its offensive in Ukraine. Although the order was legally binding, Moscow decided to ignore it, resulting in the continuation of hostilities. But such a ruling could significantly sway international public opinion.
The reason why only Israel, and not Hamas is in the dock is because Hamas is a non-state actor and can therefore not be brought to the ICJ. However, its officials can be proceeded against at the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is already investigating possible war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by both Hamas and Israel.
Also Read: The issue of genocide and the world court
In public hearings conducted from January 11-12, South Africa argued that Israel’s military operations in Gaza violated the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Convention). It relied heavily on statements made by Israeli officials and military leaders, to contend that one could infer “genocidal intent” from them.
It asserted that Israel had been carrying out hostilities against Palestinians even before Hamas’s actions on October 7 which killed around 1,200 people, and led to around 240 people being taken hostage. Reliance was also placed on reports by the International Committee of the Red Cross, the World Health Organisation, and officials of the United Nations to highlight the indiscriminate killing of civilians and Israel’s blockade of humanitarian assistance that have pushed Palestinians to the “brink of famine”.
Israel, on the other hand, contended that there was no dispute between the parties and that the scope of its military operation was limited to destroying Hamas. It also accused South Africa of relying on statistics provided by Hamas about casualties. Unintended civilian casualties occurring during the pursuit of lawful military objectives do not indicate genocidal intent, it argued.
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