More protection for civilians needed
Court does not stop Israel’s military operation in Gaza
January 26, 2024, 2:12 p.m
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South Africa accuses Israel of genocide in the Gaza Strip, but the country disagrees and is trying to avert the lawsuit at the International Court of Justice. That doesn’t work. However, Israel does not have to end the combat mission.
The International Court of Justice will not throw out South Africa’s genocide case against Israel. However, the International Court of Justice does not oblige Israel to end the military operation in the Gaza Strip. However, the United Nations’ highest court in The Hague ordered Israel to take more protective measures for Palestinians. Israel had requested that the South African lawsuit be dismissed.
ICJ President Joan E. Donoghue stated that the ICJ would not throw out the proceedings. The panel concluded that it had jurisdiction and therefore could not dismiss the case. The war resulted in many civilian casualties, widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and the displacement of an overwhelming majority of the coastal area’s population, said Donoghue. “The court recognizes the scale of the human tragedy unfolding in the region and is deeply concerned by the ongoing loss of life and human suffering.” The court has not yet decided whether the actions in the Gaza Strip constitute genocide – a decision on the matter could take years.
Israel had previously firmly rejected allegations of genocide in the Gaza war. The allegations made by South Africa are baseless and absurd, said the Israeli Foreign Ministry’s legal advisor, Tal Becker, in The Hague two weeks ago. The victims of the Gaza war and the suffering of the civilian population were solely the responsibility of the terrorist organization Hamas. “Israel is at war with Hamas, but not with the Palestinian people.”
At the time, Becker justified the attacks in the Gaza Strip with Israel’s right to self-defense after the attack by Hamas and other extremists on October 7th last year. Becker described the massacres in which around 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were kidnapped from Israel, around half of whom have so far been released.
Despite the atrocities on October 7th, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is calling on Israel in very clear terms to show restraint in the war against the radical Islamic Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “There are also rules when it comes to the right to self-defense and international humanitarian law also applies to the fight against terrorists,” explained Baerbock. Israel must adhere to these rules “even in a difficult environment in which Hamas breaks all the rules and abuses people as protective shields.”