Skip to main content

Israel says South Africa exploiting World Court on behalf of Hamas

1 min

Israel on Thursday accused South Africa of exploiting the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to help the Islamist militant group Hamas by again petitioning the World Court to take measures against Israel.

Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) rule on emergency measures against Israel following accusations by South Africa that the Israeli military operation in Gaza is a state-led genocide, in The Hague, Netherlands, January 26, 2024. Reuters/Piroschka van de Wouw

Israel on Thursday accused South Africa of exploiting the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to help the Islamist militant group Hamas by again petitioning the World Court to take measures against Israel.

"South Africa continues to act as the legal arm of Hamas in an attempt to undermine Israel's inherent right to defend itself and its citizens, and to release all of the hostages," Israel's foreign ministry said.

"The repeated requests for provisional measures made by South Africa in order to assist Hamas are yet another cynical exploitation of the International Court of Justice in the Hague, which has already twice rejected the baseless attempts to deny Israel its right and obligation of self-defense," it said.

Officials in South Africa did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

South Africa in January asked the World Court to declare that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza and to order Israel to stop its military campaign in Gaza. The court instead issued a more general order that Israel must make sure it prevents acts of genocide.

South Africa is now asking the top U.N. court to order further steps against Israel, which it said was breaching measures already in place. It said those in Gaza were facing starvation and asked the court to order that all parties cease hostilities and release all hostages and detainees.

"Israel acts and will continue to act in accordance with international law, including by facilitating humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, regardless of any legal proceedings," the Israeli ministry said. "We call on the ICJ to reject outright the new request of the representatives of Hamas."

The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas' Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and included the seizure of 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's military campaign has since killed more than 30,000 Palestinians, Gaza health authorities say.

Israel has pledged to continue its offensive until it eliminates Hamas, which rules Gaza and is sworn to Israel's destruction, and secures the release of more than 130 Israeli hostages still in Gaza.

Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch

Related

United Nations

Top UN envoy in Lebanon calls for truce, UN resolution enforcement

A call by the U.S. and France for a 21-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah "is still on the table," said the top U.N. official in Lebanon on Wednesday as she pushed for a way to enforce a U.N. Security Council resolution violated for years by both sides.

Palestine

Hamas and Fatah discuss post-Gaza plans

Leaders from Islamist group Hamas and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement discussed plans for cooperation after the war in Gaza in a new round of talks in Cairo on Wednesday, a Hamas official told Reuters.

Subscribe to our newsletter

Mena banner 4

To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.

  • Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.