The failure of the International Court of Justice to demand an urgent Israeli ceasefire in Gaza will not provide longed-for relief for 2.3 million Palestinians living in the coastal strip. While the ICJ told Israel to stop killing, wounding, traumatising and depriving Gazans of food, water and medicine, critics of the outcome argue only a ceasefire can secure this result.
Nevertheless, the Palestinian foreign ministry said the court’s orders were an “important reminder” no state was above the law and put an end to “a culture of impunity” enjoyed by Israel.
Despite the lack of a ceasefire demand, Al-Jazeera analyst Marwan Bishara argued that the court’s decision is a major development since the ICJ has accepted the South African application, which could determine if Israel is committing genocide. The worst result would have been ICJ refusal to consider the charges, he said.
Al-Jazeera analyst Marwan Bishara argues the court’s decision is a major development since the ICJ has accepted the South African application, which could determine if Israel is committing genocide
If it continues the conflict and ignores the ICJ decision to hear the case, Israel risks deepening war-driven alienation of international public opinion..
South Africa remains optimistic about the future of the case as Jordan, Indonesia and Turkey have pledged to provide documents to augment Pretoria’s 84-page submission. Furthermore, the Palestinians count a notable victory in one of the three cases already lodged with the ICJ. In 2004, the court issued an advisory opinion calling on Israel to tear down its West Bank wall, which encroaches on Palestinian owned land, bisects urban areas and divides Palestinians. Although Israel has refused to abide by this non-binding opinion, the ICJ is currently considering a 2018 case against the United States for relocating its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and a January 2023 case on the negative consequences of the Israeli occupation.
This genocide case is the most politically challenging before the ICJ as Israel’s Gaza war has opened a wide gulf between the powerful pro-Israel West and the emerging Global South, which advocates Palestinian self-determination. The Washington Post cited Quincy Institute researchers Sarang Shidore and Dan Ford, who reported that governments representing 60 per cent of the population of Global South countries are either involved in or support international legal action against Israel.
The ICJ decision coincided with Friday’s public hearing on a submission to a California federal court by Palestinian advocacy groups for a temporary injunction to compel US president Joe Biden, secretary of state Antony Blinken and defence secretary Lloyd Austin to “take all measures within their power to prevent Israel from committing genocide”.
As the ICJ rules against Israel, Gaza remains an issue in Irish politics
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