The International Court of Justice is holding the first hearings this Thursday on South Africa’s genocide lawsuit against Israel for attacks against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which have been chargedthe lives of more than 23,300 people in three months. The main judicial body of the UN, based in The Hague, detailed last week that today it is South Africa’s turn to present the case, and tomorrow, Friday, Israel’s time to defend its position.

The director general of the South African Foreign Ministry, Zane Dangor, intends to demonstrate that “Israel intends to commit genocide” in Gaza, asserting that the Government’s application to the ICJ was a “carefully considered and supported decision.” “We cannot watch a genocide unfold and find reasons not to act,” he declared after indicating that he has an obligation to ensure that The International Law to which the country is a part is applied in all Member States of the United Nations.

The South African authorities submitted a request to the ICJ a few days ago to apply provisional measures arguing that Israel “has participated, is participating and risks continuing to commit genocidal acts against the Palestinian people in Gaza”, and expressed their concern “for the plight of civilians caught in the current attacks Israelis” in Gaza.

To date, countries such as Iran, Turkey, Malaysia, Colombia, Brazil, Ireland, Nicaragua or Bolivia, and also organizations such as the Arab League, have shown their support for the demand filed by South Africa before the ICJ, while states such as The US, Paraguay and Guatemala, among others, have been against or have expressed serious doubts regarding said action. In Spain, nearly 250 left-wing jurists have signed a letter in which they demand that the Government join the lawsuit for genocide.

Holocaust survivor judge to represent Israel

Israel, for its part, has rejected South Africa’s position from the first moment, and announced, shortly after learning of South Africa’s move, that it would file an appeal before the ICJ for the “absurd blood libel” presented by Pretoria. “We guarantee South Africa’s leaders: history will judge youand he will do so without mercy,” warned the spokesman for the Israeli Executive, Eylon Levy. It will be the retired judge of the Supreme Court of Israel and Holocaust survivor Aharon Barak who will represent Israel in the appeals session.

Thus, Barak, 87, will have the opportunity to present his allegations this Friday. It should be said that The former magistrate is not an ally of the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has on many occasions shown his disagreement with the judicial reform promoted by the president, whose critics consider an attack on the separation of powers.

The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) launched a series of attacks in early October that left some 1,200 dead and nearly 240 kidnapped. The Israeli Army responded with a bloody counteroffensive against the Gaza Strip that claimed already more than 23,300 Palestinian lives and more than 57,200 injured. Added to this are more than 300 deaths in security force operations and attacks by settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.