World Court balks on Israel judgment but orders less killing
The International Court of Justice on Friday ordered Israel to prevent the killing of Palestinian civilians but failed to render a decision on whether or not the country’s military forces committed genocide.
By 15-2 vote, thecICJ told the Israeli Defense Force to immediately act to prevent killing, injuring of Palestinian civilians but the ruling stops short of demanding end to war.
Instead, it requires Israel to report back to court in a month.
A determination on genocide could take years, but the provisional order aims to prevent the situation from getting worse while the legal case proceeds.
The International Court of Justice, widely known as the World Court, on Friday ordered Israel to limit the harm of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, in a landmark decision that is part of the case determining if genocide is taking place, and will add to pressure to change course in the military campaign.
The court did not, however, order a cease-fire as requested by South Africa, though it said Israel must submit a report in one month outlining the measures it has taken to give effect to the court’s orders.
At a closely watched hearing at the Hague’s Peace Palace, the court’s president read out its order and reasoning, confirming that the court has jurisdiction and arguing that there is an urgent need for emergency measures, including more aid.
The Palestinian Authority claims that the ruling by the UN’s top court shows “no state is above the law.”
South Africa hails what it called a “decisive victory” for the international rule of law after the International Court of Justice ruled in favor of its request to impose emergency measures against Israel over its military operations in Gaza.
The ICJ issued a series of measures, saying Israel must prevent the killing or injuring of Gaza’s Palestinians, must prevent conditions calculated to wholly or partly destroy Gaza’s populace, and must prevent conditions intended to prevent births among Gazans.
However, it stopped short of granting South Africa’s demand for an international unilateral ceasefire in Israel’s war against Hamas.
Israel’s far-right, pro-settler National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called the the international body “antisemitic” after it issues the series of provisional measures against Israel, calling
“The decision of the antisemitic court in The Hague proves what was already known: This court does not seek justice, but rather the persecution of Jewish people. They were silent during the Holocaust and today they continue the hypocrisy and take it another step further,” said Ben Gvir, who has a history of making outrage-inciting comments and provoking Palestinians..
The ICJ in its current iteration was founded in 1945.
“Decisions that endanger the continued existence of the State of Israel must not be listened to,” Ben Gvir adds. “We must continue defeating the enemy until complete victory.”