ICJ says to rule on 'Israel' Gaza genocide case on Friday
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The International Court of Justice will be ruling on the case of the genocide the Israeli occupation is perpetrating in Gaza on Friday.
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Pro-Palestinian supporters picket outside the High Court in Cape Town, South Africa, January 11, 2024 (AP)
The International Court of Justice in The Hague is set to announce its verdict on Friday in a pivotal case accusing the Israeli occupation of genocide in Gaza.
South Africa has brought "Israel" before the court, alleging violations of the UN's Genocide Convention. The case revolves around the Israeli occupation's military campaign in Gaza ongoing since October 7, which has thus far killed more than 25,000 people and wounded over 63,000 others.
The International Court of Justice has the authority to issue "provisional measures," emergency orders aimed at safeguarding Palestinians in Gaza from potential breaches of the convention. These orders are legally binding and cannot be appealed, though enforcing them poses a challenge.
This is what the ICJ will be issuing a ruling on instead of the genocide allegations, which could take years to come to fruition.
Pretoria seeks emergency measures to protect Gazans, but the court's ruling will not address the fundamental question of whether the Israeli occupation is committing genocide.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted that his government might not adhere to any ICJ order, stating, "No one will stop us – not The Hague, not the Axis of Evil, and no one else," in reference to the Axis of Resistance.
The ICJ's limited enforcement capabilities were exemplified when it ordered Russia to halt its invasion of Ukraine, a directive that went unheeded. If the court rules against "Israel", it could intensify political pressure, potentially leading to sanctions.
During the first day of hearings at the International Court of Justice, South Africa asked the ICJ to oblige "Israel" to immediately stop its military operation in the Gaza Strip.
South Africa's legal team stated, in its opening statement at The Hague, that South Africa has recognized the ongoing Nakba of the Palestinian people through "Israel's" colonization since 1948, "which has systematically and forcibly dispossessed, displaced and fragmented the Palestinian people, deliberately denying them the internationally recognized inalienable right to self-determination and their internationally recognized rights of return as refugees to their towns and villages in what is now the state of Israel."
