Rabat – The International Court of Justice, known as the ICJ or the World Court said today that Israel must take steps to prevent acts of genocide in Gaza.
The court urged Israel to allow for humanitarian assistance and end violations of Article 2 of the Genocide Convention against Palestinians.
On October 7, Israel launched a devastating war on Gaza, in which around 25,900 Palestinians have been killed, 64,110 injured and 85% of the population displaced.
The hearing was at 12:00 GMT, 1 p.m. Moroccan time, with the rulings announced after about an hour of the session.
At the end of the court hearing today, the ICJ ordered Israel to take measures to prevent acts of genocide in the Gaza Strip, and Israel must report back to the ICJ in one month, with evidence of its preventative measures.
The court obliges Israel to take more measures to protect Palestinians, by precenting and punishing incitement to genocide in the Gaza strip but does not order it to end the war on civilians in the Palestinian enclave.
Many of the judges on the court agreed with South Africa’s accusations, and that the nation had jurisdiction. However, the rulings that have resulted today are what South Africa has termed a “decisive victory” towards justice for the Palestinian people.
The Palestinian Authority said on X that the ICJ’s ruling is an “important reminder” that no state is “above the law.”
Senior Hamas official Samu Abu ZUhri has praised the court’s decision, which will be significant in holding Israel accountable for its crimes in Gaza.
“We call for forcing the occupation to implement the court’s decisions,” he told Reuters.
The ruling today at the UN’s top court does not concern the direct accusation of the case, effectively, whether or not Israel is committing genocide, but South Africa’s call for an urgent intervention in Gaza, and for a cessation of Israel’s murderous campaign on Gaza.
South Africa filed a case against Israel before the ICJ in December, which stated that Israel’s devastating war on civilians in Gaza amounts to state-led genocide, arguing that Israel’s offensive is amounts to “destruction of Palestinian life”, and that Israel is breaching the UN’s 1948 Genocide Convention.
There will be no final decision made at court today, as this hearing is only making an interim ruling on South Africa’s request for the ICJ to take action with provisional measures to protect Palestinians.
While many anxiously await the first ruling by the ICJ, the rulings the ICJ makes cannot be enforced, though they are a political landmark.
South Africa is calling for several measures to be put in place by the court to protect Palestinians, including an immediate ceasefire and suspension of Israel’s devastating war the Gaza strip. International lawyers have said that today’s ruling would be a pretext for possible sanctions that may be imposed on Israel.
In response to these accusations, Israel has denied all accusations, with government spokesperson Eylon Levy stating that he expects the ICJ to “throw out these spurious and specious charges.” Israel has maintained its right to “defend itself” against terrorist attacks and to prevent a future attack from occurring.
