The Hague (Netherlands): In the second day of hearings Friday at the United Nations’ top court, Israel rejected allegations levied by South Africa that its campaign against Hamas amounts to genocide against the Palestinian people, saying that, if anything, it is Hamas that is guilty of genocide.
Although the case is likely to take years to resolve, South Africa is asking the International Court of Justice to order an immediate suspension of Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip. It’s unclear if Israel would comply with any court order.
Meanwhile, the United States and British militaries have launched strikes on sites used by the Iran-backed Houthi rebel group in Yemen in retaliation for their attacks on ships in the Red Sea. The Houthis say their attacks are aimed at stopping Israel’s war on Hamas, but their targets increasingly have little or no connection to Israel and imperil a crucial trade route linking Asia and the Middle East with Europe.
The Oct. 7 Hamas attack from Gaza into southern Israel that triggered the war killed around 1,200 people and saw some 250 others taken hostage by militants. Israel’s air, ground and sea assault in Gaza has killed more than 23,000 people, some 70% of them women and children, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-ruled territory. The count does not differentiate between civilians and combatants.
Meanwhile, Germany’s government said Friday that it will request to join the International Court of Justice case as third party on Israel’s behalf, saying there is “no basis whatsoever” for genocide accusations.
Under the court’s rules, if Germany files a declaration of intervention in the case, it will be able to make legal arguments to support Israel at the merits phase of this case to address how the genocide convention should be interpreted, legal experts say.
“That would come after the court issues its decision on South Africa’s request for urgent measures to protect the Palestinian people in Gaza,” said international lawyer Balkees Jarrah, associate director of the international justice program at Human Rights Watch, in an interview from The Hague where she attended the ICJ hearings.
Berlin’s support for Israel carries some symbolic significance given Germany’s Nazi history.
“Hamas terrorists brutally attacked, tortured, killed and kidnapped innocent people in Israel,” German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit said in a statement Friday. “Since then, Israel has been defending itself against the inhumane attack by Hamas.”
“We know that different countries assess Israel’s operation in Gaza differently,” Hebestreit said. “However, the Federal Government firmly and expressly rejects the accusation of genocide that has now been made against Israel at the International Court of Justice.”
Hebestreit said Germany “sees itself as particularly committed to the Convention against Genocide.” He added: “We firmly oppose political instrumentalisation,.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the announcement, saying the gesture “touches all of Israel’s citizens.”
