Gaza war: Israel tells UN top court South Africa makes ‘mockery’ of genocide charge
- Israel told the UN’s court on Friday that South Africa’s case ‘makes a mockery of the heinous charge of genocide’
- South Africa told the court on Thursday the situation in Gaza has reached ‘a new and horrific stage’ and urged judges to order a halt to Israeli military operations
Israel defended the military necessity of its Gaza offensive on Friday at the International Court of Justice and asked judges to throw out a request by South Africa to order it to halt operations in Rafah and withdraw from the Palestinian territory.
Israeli Justice Ministry official Gilad Noam called South Africa’s case, which accuses Israel of violating the Genocide Convention, “completely divorced from facts and circumstances”.
The South African legal team, which set out its case for fresh emergency measures on Thursday, framed the Israeli military operation as part of a genocidal plan aimed at bringing about the destruction of the Palestinian people.
“[The case] makes a mockery of the heinous charge of genocide,” Noam said. He called it “an obscene exploitation of the most sacred convention,” referring to the international treaty banning genocide, agreed after the Holocaust of European Jews in World War II.
The convention requires all countries to act to prevent genocide, and the ICJ, also known as the World Court, which hears disputes between states, has concluded that this gives South Africa a right to make the case.
A woman who yelled “liars!” during Israel’s presentation was removed by security guards, a rare protest in the “Great Hall of Justice” courtroom in The Hague.