U.N. Court Orders Israel to Prevent Genocide, but Does Not Demand Stop to War
The United Nations’ highest court said Friday that Israel must take action to prevent acts of genocide by its forces in the Gaza Strip and must let more aid into the enclave. But the court did not call on Israel to immediately suspend its military campaign.
The ruling, by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, was an initial step in a case brought by South Africa that accuses Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Though the court has no means of enforcement, the closely watched case has added to international pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over Israel’s war against Hamas.
Initial reaction among Palestinians was mixed, with the Palestinian Foreign Ministry saying the court had “ruled in favor of humanity and international law,” while some people criticized the judges for not ordering a stop to the war.
Israel has strongly denied the genocide charges, and on Friday its officials lashed out at the court. Netanyahu said it was “outrageous” for the judges even to hear the case, while Defense Minister Yoav Gallant — whose words the judges noted when discussing whether Israeli officials had made statements that constituted incitement to genocide — said his country did not need “to be lectured on morality.”
In a packed courtroom this month, lawyers for South Africa argued that Israel had meant to “create conditions of death” in Gaza and demanded that the court order an emergency suspension of the military campaign.
Israel’s lawyers argued that the country’s military had worked to preserve civilian lives in Gaza. Israel also said it had given civilians two weeks to leave northern Gaza before invading in late October and, after freezing aid delivery at the start of the war, later enabled its daily supply.
In its 29-page interim ruling, the court said that Israel must take actions to ensure that its soldiers and citizens adhere to the U.N. genocide convention, and must report back within a month to show how it is complying with the instructions.
The court is not expected to issue a ruling on the broader genocide charge for years.
Here is what else to know:
— Health officials in Gaza say that more than 25,000 people there have been killed since Oct. 7, when Israel began a military operation to defeat Hamas. Israel launched the operation in response to a Hamas-led attack in which Israeli officials say around 1,200 people were killed and around 240 were taken to Gaza as hostages, many of whom are still captive.
— The Israeli military on Thursday ordered the evacuation of tens of thousands of Palestinians who had already been displaced and were sheltering in a U.N. vocational training center in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. Israel’s ground offensive has intensified in southern Gaza, where more than 1 million people have fled seeking safety.
— The White House is sending CIA Director William Burns to Europe to meet with senior officials from Israel, Egypt and Qatar in an effort to advance negotiations over the release of hostages held in Gaza and a longer cease-fire. U.S. officials who described Burns’ trip said there is a new opening for talks because Israel appears willing to agree to a longer pause in fighting as part of any further hostage releases.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
