EXPLAINER
Listed here are nations which welcomed the ICJ case that claims Israel is committing genocide in opposition to Palestinians in Gaza.
The Worldwide Courtroom of Justice (ICJ) based mostly in The Hague will maintain its first listening to in South Africa’s genocide case in opposition to Israel on Thursday, with a number of nations welcoming the transfer amid a worldwide refrain for a ceasefire in Gaza.
South Africa filed the lawsuit finish of December, accusing Israel of genocide in its battle on Gaza and searching for a halt to the brutal army assault that has killed greater than 23,000 Palestinians, practically 10,000 of them kids.
The 84-page submitting by South Africa says Israel violated the 1948 Genocide Conference, drawn up within the aftermath of World Conflict II and the Holocaust.
Each Israel and South Africa are signatories to the United Nations Genocide Conference, which supplies the ICJ – the very best UN authorized physique – jurisdiction to rule on disputes over the treaty.
All states that signed the conference are obliged to not commit genocide and likewise to stop and punish it. The treaty defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”.
Right here’s what we all know concerning the nations backing South Africa in its case in opposition to Israel, and the nations that oppose the case on the world courtroom.
Which nations have welcomed South Africa’s ICJ case in opposition to Israel?
- The Group of Islamic International locations (OIC): The 57-member bloc, which incorporates Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan and Morocco, voiced their assist for the case on December 30.
- Malaysia: In an announcement launched on January 2, the Malaysian Ministry of International Affairs welcomed the South African utility. It reiterated a name for an unbiased Palestinian state “based on the pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital”.
- Turkey: Turkish Ministry of International Affairs spokesperson Oncu Keceli posted on X on January 3 welcoming South Africa’s transfer.
- Jordan: International Minister Ayman Safadi mentioned on January 4 that Amman would again South Africa.
- Bolivia: On Sunday, the Ministry of International Affairs of Bolivia dubbed South Africa’s transfer as historic, changing into the primary Latin American nation to again the ICJ case in opposition to Israel.
- Apart from nations, many advocacy teams and civil society teams worldwide have additionally joined South Africa’s name. These embody Terreiro Pindorama in Brazil, Asociacion Nacional de Amistad Italia-Cuba in Italy, and Collectif Judeo Arabe et Citoyen pour la Palestine in France, reported unbiased outlet Widespread Desires.
Which nations filed the ICC request earlier?
Bolivia additionally identified it had earlier filed a request to Worldwide Legal Courtroom (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan alongside South Africa, Bangladesh, Comoros, and Djibouti to research the scenario in Palestine. Khan mentioned he acquired the request on November 30.
The ICC and the ICJ are typically conflated with each other. Each the courts are situated in The Hague, Netherlands. Whereas the aim of the ICJ is to resolve conflicts between states, the ICC prosecutes people for committing crimes, in response to the College of Melbourne’s Pursuit platform. Whereas states can’t be sued on the ICC, the prosecutor can open an investigation the place crimes, together with genocide, had been doubtless dedicated.
Who isn’t backing South Africa’s ICJ case?
America has voiced its opposition to the genocide case. Nationwide safety spokesperson John Kirby known as South Africa’s submission “meritless, counterproductive, and completely without any basis” throughout a White Home press briefing on January 3.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog instructed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday that “there is nothing more atrocious and preposterous” than the lawsuit. Herzog additionally thanked Blinken for Washington’s assist of Israel.
Israel’s Western allies, together with the European Union, have principally maintained silence on the ICJ case.
The UK, which has refused to assist the case, has been accused of double requirements after it submitted detailed authorized paperwork to the ICJ a few month in the past to assist claims that Myanmar dedicated genocide in opposition to the Rohingya group.