CAPE TOWN – South African lawyers have told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that the last 13 weeks of attacks on Gaza was evidence of a genocide in the making.
It’s asking the court to consider nine provisional measures that will put an immediate stop to the attacks by the Israel Defense Forces and allow humanitarian aid to enter the occupied territory unhindered.
South Africa is arguing that Israel is breaching the UN Genocide Convention and its government has the express intent of wiping out Palestinians.
Over 23,000 Palestinians, at least half of them children, have already been killed in Israel’s retaliation for a Hamas attack on its state on 7 October.
Advocate Adila Hassim opened South Africa’s legal arguments before a bench of 17 judges sitting in The Hague by outlining life in Gaza under Israeli occupation for some two million Palestinians.
She told the world’s highest court that Israel’s attacks on Palestinians in recent weeks had been calculated.
“Genocides are never declared in advance. But this court has the benefit of the past 13 weeks of evidence that shows incontrovertibly a pattern of conduct and related intention that justifies a plausible claim of genocidal acts.”
She’s been backed up by Advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi who told the court the Israeli government was acting with the express intent of removing Palestinians and that its leaders regularly make statements to this effect.
The hearing continues.