What chance does South Africa’s genocide case against Israel have at the International Court of Justice?

Special What chance does South Africa’s genocide case against Israel have at the International Court of Justice?
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Palestinian women mourn their relatives who were killed in an overnight Israeli strike on the Al-Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on December 24, 2023. Israel is now facing a case of genocide at the UN’s top judicial agency over its indiscriminate strikes on Palestinian civilian centers in Gaza. (AFP)
Special What chance does South Africa’s genocide case against Israel have at the International Court of Justice?
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Indiscriminate shellings and bombings by Israeli defense forces have killed more than 20,000 people in Gaza and displaced hundreds of thousands more from their homes. (AFP)
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Updated 05 January 2024
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What chance does South Africa’s genocide case against Israel have at the International Court of Justice?

What chance does South Africa’s genocide case against Israel have at the International Court of Justice?
  • The South African government has accused Israel of breaching its obligations under the Genocide Convention
  • If the court finds there is a “plausible risk” of Israel committing genocidal acts in Gaza, pressure will grow for a ceasefire

LONDON: South Africa’s decision to bring a case against Israel at the UN’s top judicial agency over what it describes as “genocidal acts” in Gaza represents a watershed moment for international law, according to experts.

The International Court of Justice confirmed it has received an 84-page suit, filed on Dec. 29, detailing purported brutal practices in breach of Israel’s obligations under the Genocide Convention, and said a hearing will take place on Jan. 11 and 12.

Michelle Kelsall, a senior lecturer in international law at the SOAS University of London and co-director of the Centre for Human Rights Law, said an ICJ ruling that finds there is a “plausible risk” of Israel committing genocidal acts would mark an important development in the push for a ceasefire agreement.




South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, shown in this September 19, 2023, photo at the UN General Assembly, has accused Israel ofthe crime of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. (AFP)

“If the court does determine that there is a plausible risk to genocidal acts being committed, it may order provisional measures in line with what South Africa is requesting, which would be in keeping with recent case law determined by the court,” Kelsall told Arab News.

“Notably, it does not need to determine if Israel is committing genocidal acts in order for the obligation to prevent to be invoked, or to order provisional measures. It is sufficient that a plausible risk of genocide occurring has been proven, based on the evidence presented.”

Such evidence includes not only mass casualties, which now exceed 22,000 according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza, but impediments to births through damage to essential health services, the destruction of homes, blockades preventing the provision of food, water and medical assistance, and widespread expulsions and displacement of Gazans.

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These actions, the suit argues, can only be read as being “intended to bring about destruction (of Palestinians) as a group,” in violation of the 1948 convention’s definition of genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.”

Furthermore, the suit argues that statements by Israeli officials, including embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, demonstrate the “genocidal intent” necessary to prove a claim of genocide.

Cited evidence of this includes Netanyahu’s comparison of Palestinians to the biblical story of the Amalek nation, which God ordered Israelites to destroy, and his assertion on Dec. 26 that the fighting would be “deepened” despite the high civilian death toll.




In a sign of utter disregard of Palestinian lives, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that the offensive in Gaza would be “deepened” despite the high civilian death toll. (Pool photo via Reuters/File)

Mai El-Sadany, a human rights lawyer and director of the Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy, recently told Al Jazeera that the South African legal documentation was particularly prescient, given what she described as “heightened disinformation around the war.”

She said the case would have significant implications, adding that the proceedings within the ICJ were “important in slowing the normalization of any mass atrocities committed by Israel.”

El-Sadany added: “They send a message that if a country commits mass atrocities, as Israel is doing, it must expect to be brought before an international court, for its record to be critiqued against international norms, and for its reputation on the international stage to take a hit.”


FASTFACTS

FASTFACTS South Africa’s 84-page suit accuses Israel of breaching the Genocide Convention.

The International Court of Justice hearing at the Hague will take place Jan. 11-12.


Kelsall said Israel’s allies might also find themselves in the spotlight, as “the Court stands to make an important pronouncement regarding obligations to prevent genocide more generally, which could have ramifications for states other than South Africa and Israel.”

This, she added, reflects the ICJ’s assertion following the 1995 Bosnian genocide that the obligation to prevent such crimes must take into account the geographical distance of the state concerned from the scene of the crimes, and the strength of political connections and ties of other kinds.

“While South Africa may have limited capacity to do more than it already has (in requesting provisional measures from the court), several other states, including the US and the UK, may be put on notice of a much more significant obligation to prevent genocide,” said Kelsall.




This picture taken on January 3, 2024 shows a view of buildings destroyed by Israeli bombardment in the central Gaza Strip amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas. (AFP)

Israel’s Foreign Ministry condemned the filing of the case as “despicable and contemptuous exploitation” of the ICJ, and accused the South African government of “blood libel” and being “criminally complicit” in the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel.

Nonetheless, Israeli officials appear to be taking the move seriously. The government’s spokesperson, Eylon Levy, confirmed it would defend its practices at the court in The Hague, with American lawyer Alan Dershowitz reportedly in line to lead the defense.

This is in itself an indication of the potential ramifications for the Israeli government, with some commentators suggesting the nation might face a bevy of sanctions as domestic pressure forces the hands of allies in London and Washington.

Sarang Shidore, director of the Washington-based Quincy Institute, told Al Jazeera a ruling in favor of South Africa’s case would certainly put pressure on the Biden administration in this presidential election year.

A ruling against Israel could have “implications for the standing of the US,” he said.

“The Biden administration is increasingly vulnerable to domestic opponents of the war and international charges of double standards (but) my sense is that the Biden administration, and some key European allies, will strongly back Israel at the ICJ. We shall see.”

 


Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics

Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics
Updated 22 November 2024
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Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics

Israeli strikes batter Lebanon, killing five medics
  • Israel has pushed on with its intense military campaign against Hezbollah, tempering hopes that efforts by a US envoy could lead to an imminent ceasefire
  • Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at Israeli troops east of Khiyam at least four times on Friday

BEIRUT: Israeli strikes battered southern Lebanon and the outskirts of the capital Beirut on Friday, killing at least five medics, as ground troops clashed with Hezbollah fighters in the south.
Israel has pushed on with its intense military campaign against the Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, tempering hopes that efforts by a US envoy could lead to an imminent ceasefire.
US mediator Amos Hochstein said earlier this week in Beirut that a truce was “within our grasp.” He traveled on to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz before returning to Washington, according to the news outlet Axios.
His trip aimed to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah along Lebanon’s southern border, which escalated dramatically when Israel ramped up its strikes in late September and sent ground troops into Lebanon on Oct. 1.
Israeli troops have fought Hezbollah in a strip of towns all along the border and this week pushed deeper to the edges of Khiyam, a town some six km (four miles) from the border. Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at Israeli troops east of Khiyam at least four times on Friday.
Lebanese security sources told Reuters that Israeli troops had also advanced in a string of villages to the west as well. They said Israel was most likely trying to isolate Khiyam ahead of a major attack on the town.
Israeli strikes on two other villages in southern Lebanon killed a total of five medics from a rescue force affiliated with Hezbollah, the Lebanese health ministry said.
The more than 3,500 people killed by Israeli strikes over the last year include more than 200 medics, the health ministry said.
Israel says its aim is to secure the return home of tens of thousands of people evacuated from Israel’s north due to rocket attacks by Hezbollah, which began firing across the border in support of Hamas at the start of the Gaza war in October 2023.
Israel also mounted more strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a once densely populated stronghold of Hezbollah.
It issued evacuation orders on the social media platform X for several buildings in the area on Friday. Reuters footage showed one of the strikes appearing to pierce the center of a multi-story building, sending the whole structure toppling in a massive cloud of smoke.


UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon

UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon
Updated 22 November 2024
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UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon

UN reports heavy clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah in south Lebanon
  • “We are aware of heavy shelling in the vicinity of our bases,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said
  • Asked if the peacekeepers and staff at the headquarters are safe, Tenenti said: “Yes for the moment”

BEIRUT: Israeli troops fought fierce battles with Hezbollah fighters on Friday in different areas in south Lebanon, including a coastal town that is home to the headquarters of UN peacekeepers.
A spokesman for the UN peacekeeping force known as UNIFIL told The Associated Press that they are monitoring “heavy clashes” in the coastal town of Naqoura and the village of Chamaa to the northeast.
UNIFIL’s headquarters are located in Naqoura in Lebanon’s southern edge close to the border with Israel.
“We are aware of heavy shelling in the vicinity of our bases,” UNIFIL spokesman Andrea Tenenti said. Asked if the peacekeepers and staff at the headquarters are safe, Tenenti said: “Yes for the moment.”
Several UNIFIL posts have been hit since Israel began its ground invasion of Lebanon on Oct. 1, leaving a number of peacekeepers wounded.
The fighting came a day after the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former defense minister and a Hamas military leader, accusing them of war crimes and crimes against humanity over their 13-month war in Gaza and the October 2023 attack on Israel respectively.
The warrant marked the first time that a sitting leader of a major Western ally has been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity by a global court of justice.
Israel’s war has caused heavy destruction across Gaza, decimated parts of the territory and driven almost the entire population of 2.3 million people from their homes, leaving most dependent on aid to survive.
Israel launched its war in Gaza after Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting another 250. Around 100 hostages are still inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are believed to be dead.
Israel has also launched airstrikes against Lebanon after the Hezbollah militant group began firing rockets, drones and missiles into Israel the day after Hamas’ attack last October. A full-blown war erupted in September after nearly a year of lower-level conflict.


Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages

Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages
Updated 22 November 2024
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Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages

Gaza ministry: hospitals to cut or stop services ‘within 48 hours’ over fuel shortages
  • All hospitals in Gaza would have to stop or reduce services “within 48 hours“

GAZA: The Hamas government’s health ministry warned Friday all hospitals in Gaza would have to stop or reduce services “within 48 hours” for lack of fuel, blaming Israel for blocking its entry.
“We raise an urgent warning as all hospitals in Gaza Strip will stop working or reduce their services within 48 hours due to the occupation’s (Israel’s) obstruction of fuel entry,” Marwan Al-Hams, director of Gaza’s field hospitals, said during a press conference.


Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers

Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers
Updated 22 November 2024
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Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers

Israel says to end ‘administrative detention’ for West Bank settlers
  • Practice allows for detainees to be held for long periods without being charged or appear in court
  • The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said in August that 3,432 Palestinians were held in administrative detention

JERUSALEM: Israeli authorities will stop holding Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank under administrative detention, or incarceration without trial, the defense ministry announced Friday.
The practice allows for detainees to be held for long periods without being charged or appear in court, and is often used against Palestinians who Israel deems security threats.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said it was “inappropriate” for Israel to employ administrative detention against settlers who “face severe Palestinian terror threats and unjustified international sanctions.”
But, according to settlement watchdog Peace Now, it is one of only few effective tools that Israeli authorities to prevent settler attacks against Palestinians, which have surged in the West Bank over the past year.
Katz said in a statement issued by his office that prosecution or “other preventive measures” would be used to deal with criminal acts in the West Bank.
B’Tselem, an Israeli rights group, said authorities use administrative detention “extensively and routinely” to hold thousands of Palestinians for lengthy periods of time.
The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said in August that 3,432 Palestinians were held in administrative detention.
Israeli daily Haaretz reported on Friday that eight settlers were held under the same practice in November.
Yonatan Mizrahi, director of settlement watch for Peace Now, said that although administrative detention was mostly used in the West Bank to detain Palestinians, it was one of the few effective tools for temporarily removing the threat of settler violence through detention.
“The cancelation of administrative detention orders for settlers alone is a cynical... move that whitewashes and normalizes escalating Jewish terrorism under the cover of war,” the group said in a statement, referring to a spike in settler attacks throughout the Israel-Hamas conflict over the past 13 months.
Western governments, including Israel’s ally and military backer the United States, have recently imposed sanctions on Israeli settlers and settler organizations over ties to violence against Palestinians.
On Monday, US authorities announced sanctions against Amana, a movement that backs settlement development, and others who have “ties to violent actors in the West Bank.”
“Amana is a key part of the Israeli extremist settlement movement and maintains ties to various persons previously sanctioned by the US government and its partners for perpetrating violence in the West Bank,” the US Treasury said.
Excluding Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the West Bank — which Israel has occupied since 1967 — is home to three million Palestinians as well as about 490,000 Israelis living in settlements that are illegal under international law.


UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 

UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 
Updated 22 November 2024
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UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 

UK would arrest Netanyahu over ICC warrant: Senior politician 
  • Emily Thornberry: Britain has ‘obligation under Rome Convention’ to arrest Israeli PM if he enters country 
  • Court: ‘Reasonable grounds to believe’ Netanyahu responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity in Gaza

LONDON: The UK will arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he enters the country, a senior British politician has said.

The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu on Thursday for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, alongside his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, pertaining to the Gaza war.

Emily Thornberry — Labour chair of the foreign affairs committee, and former shadow foreign secretary and shadow attorney general — told Sky News: “If Netanyahu comes to Britain, our obligation under the Rome Convention would be to arrest him under the warrant from the ICC.

“(It is) not really a question of should — we are required to, because we are members of the ICC.”

UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has refused to be drawn on whether Netanyahu would be arrested if he set foot on British soil, saying it “wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment.”

She told Sky: “We’ve always respected the importance of international law, but in the majority of the cases that they pursue, they don’t become part of the British legal process.

“What I can say is that obviously, the UK government’s position remains that we believe the focus should be on getting a ceasefire in Gaza.”

Netanyahu’s arrest warrant is the first to be issued against the premier of a major Western ally by an international court for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

His office denounced the warrant as “anti-Semitic,” adding that Israel “rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions.” Israel is not an ICC member and rejects the court’s jurisdiction.

US President Joe Biden called the warrants against Netanyahu and Gallant “outrageous,” adding: “Whatever the ICC might imply, there is no equivalence — none — between Israel and Hamas.”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said he plans to invite Netanyahu to visit Budapest, adding that the arrest warrant will “not be observed” by his government.

The Italian and French governments, however, have indicated that Netanyahu will be arrested if he visits either country.

The ICC said on Thursday it has “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu and Gallant “bear criminal responsibility” for “the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare; and the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts.”

The court also issued a warrant for Hamas commander Mohammed Diab Ibrahim Al-Masri for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Israel says Al-Masri, believed to have been the mastermind behind the Hamas attack of Oct. 7, 2023, was killed in Gaza earlier this year.

The ICC said it issued the warrant for his arrest because of insufficient evidence to prove his death.