{"id":253155,"date":"2024-01-29T12:00:18","date_gmt":"2024-01-29T12:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=253155"},"modified":"2024-01-28T07:18:13","modified_gmt":"2024-01-28T07:18:13","slug":"the-international-court-of-justice-stops-short-of-ordering-gaza-ceasefire-to-stop-genocide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2024\/01\/the-international-court-of-justice-stops-short-of-ordering-gaza-ceasefire-to-stop-genocide\/","title":{"rendered":"The International Court of Justice Stops Short of Ordering Gaza Ceasefire to Stop Genocide"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote><p>26 Jan 2024 &#8211; <em>The ICJ ruled that Israel\u2019s military shall not commit acts forbidden by Article 2 of Genocide Convention but stopped short of ordering Israel to cease its military operation in Gaza.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"title\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><span class=\"field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden\"><span lang=\"FR\">Read:<\/span><\/span><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.icj-cij.org\/case\/192\" ><span class=\"field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden\"><span lang=\"FR\"> Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel) &#8211; <\/span><\/span><\/a><span class=\"field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden\"><span lang=\"FR\">International Court of Justice<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"THE HAGUE: South Africa v. Israel - ICJ ORDER\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bdXQc0fnOIs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The World Court <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.icj-cij.org\/sites\/default\/files\/case-related\/192\/192-20240126-ord-01-00-en.pdf\" >ruled<\/a> on Friday that the Israeli military must ensure that it is not committing acts in Gaza that are in violation of Article 2 of the Genocide Convention; Israel must pursue legal action against Israelis who made statements of genocidal intent; it must facilitate humanitarian aid into Gaza and Israel must report back to the Court on measures it is taking to fulfill these orders in one month.<\/p>\n<p>The Court ordered that:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe State of Israel shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to Palestinians in Gaza, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of this Convention, in particular: (a) killing members of the group. \u2026\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The Court\u2019s actions amount to little more than what the United States has been saying publicly about Israel\u2019s conduct, that it must not commit acts that amount to war crimes.\u00a0 The U.S. has not gone as far as to tell Israel not to commit genocide but the Court\u2019s action falls far short of what South Africa and much of the world has been demanding.<\/p>\n<p>The Court said South Africa has a plausible claim in at least some instances in its request for provisional measures to stop what it argues is Israel\u2019s ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.\u00a0 But the provisional measures South Africa requested \u2014 namely to stop the killing \u2014 were denied.<\/p>\n<p>The Court established that there was a dispute against Israel and South Africa to give the Court jurisdiction. The Court also presented a litany of overwhelming evidence that Israel is plausibly committing genocide and that the Court would allow the case the go forward, namely putting Israel on trial for genocide. That will take years to adjudicate.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_106009\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\">\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07.png\" class=\"image-anchor\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-106009\" src=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-1000x566.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-1000x566.png 1000w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-500x283.png 500w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-768x434.png 768w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-1536x869.png 1536w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-2048x1159.png 2048w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-260x147.png 260w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.04.07-160x91.png 160w\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"487\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-106009\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-106009\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Judge Joan\u00a0Donoghue of the U.S., president of the ICJ, reading the Court\u2019s ruling on Friday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-caption-text\">(U.N. TV Screenshot)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Naledi Pandor, South Africa\u2019s foreign minister, tried to put a positive spin on the Court\u2019s decisions in remarks to reporters outside the Palace of Justice in The Hague. \u201cI am satisfied that our request for provisional measures was addressed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Pandor said she was disappointed the word \u201ccessation\u201d of hostilities was not included in the Court\u2019s orders, but said that to fulfill the orders to provide humanitarian services to Gaza Israel must stop its military operation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believe to execute these orders there would have to be a ceasefire,\u201d Pandor said.\u00a0 However, she added: \u201cIn no way will I say that I am disappointed\u201d in the court\u2019s ruling. \u201cI had hoped for it [a ceasefire order], but to provide services would require a ceasefire.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Pandor said she thought it \u201cvery significant\u201d that Israel must report back to the World Court in one month to show how it is preventing its forces from committing genocide. It is unclear if there is a procedure for the Court to act if it is not satisfied with Israel\u2019s report that Israel is fulfilling the order to do everything it can to prevent genocide.<\/p>\n<p>Given that the Court\u2019s directives amount to little more than public statements made by the U.S., Washington should be pleased with Friday\u2019s ruling.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_106011\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\">\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling.png\" class=\"image-anchor\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-106011\" src=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-1000x563.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-1000x563.png 1000w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-500x282.png 500w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-1536x865.png 1536w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-2048x1153.png 2048w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-260x146.png 260w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Israel-listens-to-Courts-ruling-160x90.png 160w\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"484\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-106011\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-106011\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Israeli legal team listens to Court\u2019s ruling on Friday. (U.N. TV Screenshot)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Palestine Authority also tried to portray the ruling in a positive light. \u201cThe ICJ order is an important reminder that no state is above the law,\u201d PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said in a video statement. He said the ruling \u201cshould serve as a wake-up call for Israel and actors who enabled its entrenched impunity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The people who count most, Gazans, were <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.defenddemocracy.press\/icjs-israel-genocide-case-ruling-met-with-disappointment-in-gaza\/\" >crushed<\/a> by the ruling.<\/p>\n<p>Most of 50-minute statement read by Judge Joan Donoghue, the American president of the court, was taken up by a recitation of evidence that sounded like it came directly out of South Africa\u2019s complaint.<\/p>\n<p>She relied heavily on statements by top U.N. officials, including the secretary-general and senior aid officials, to paint a picture of abject horror being imposed on the people of Gaza. She also read into the record clear statements of genocidal intent by the Israeli defense minister and the Israeli president.<\/p>\n<p>Israel has being saying all along and stated it clearly in its argument before the Court on Nov. 12 that it is providing humanitarian aid and that it is working very carefully to avoid civilian casualties. It can likely be expected that Israel\u2019s one-month report will repeat similar statements, which have already been refuted by U.N. officials, including the secretary-general.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">BREAKING: BENJAMIN NETANYAHU OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON ICJ RULING<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIsrael&#39;s commitment to international law is unshakable. Equally unshakable is our sacred commitment to continue to defend our country and protect our people.<\/p>\n<p>Like any country, Israel has an inherent right to defend\u2026 <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/yRsMyGFALj\" >pic.twitter.com\/yRsMyGFALj<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sulaiman Ahmed (@ShaykhSulaiman) <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ShaykhSulaiman\/status\/1750876702060790006?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" >January 26, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyah, who was described by Al Jazeera as pleased with the outcome, took to Twitter to state that the claim of Israel committing genocide was \u201crightly rejected\u201d by the Court and to\u00a0eviscerate anyone who dared suggest Israel could commit such a thing as genocide.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIsrael\u2019s commitment to international law is unwavering,\u201d Netanyahu wrote. \u201cEqually unwavering is our sacred commitment to continue to defend our country and defend our people. Like every country, Israel has an inherent right to defend itself.\u201d\u00a0 He said:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThe vile attempt to deny Israel this fundamental right is blatant discrimination against the Jewish state, and it was justly rejected. The charge of genocide leveled against Israel is not only false, it\u2019s outrageous, and decent people everywhere should reject it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Netanyahu clearly believes that Israeli military actions the Court believes could amount to genocide is Israel\u2019s \u201cfundamental right.\u201d He continued to present Israel as the victim and Hamas as the war criminal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn the eve of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, I again pledge as Prime Minister of Israel \u2013 Never Again,\u201d he said. \u201cIsrael will continue to defend itself against Hamas, a genocidal terror organization.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who was singled out for his alleged incitement by the Court, said that\u00a0Israel \u201cdoes not need to be lectured on morality\u201d by the Court.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe International Court of Justice in The Hague went above and beyond, when it granted South Africa\u2019s antisemitic request to discuss the claim of genocide in Gaza, and now refuses to reject the petition outright,\u201d he said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose who seek justice, will not find it on the leather chairs of the court chambers in The Hague \u2014 they will find it in the Hamas tunnels in Gaza, where 136 hostages are held, and where those who murdered our children are hiding,\u201d he said. \u201cThey will find it in the \u2018Spirit of the IDF,\u2019 a document that outlines the values and conduct of our moral and professional soldiers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>International lawyer Francis Boyle, who won provisional measures against Yugoslavia at the ICJ in 1993, <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/accuracy.org\/release\/world-court-orders-israel-to-abide-by-genocide-convention-and-stop-killing\/\" >told<\/a>\u00a0 the Institute for Public Accuracy:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cThis is a massive, overwhelming legal victory for the Republic of South Africa against Israel on behalf of the Palestinians. The U.N. General Assembly now can suspend Israel from participation in its activities as it did for South Africa and Yugoslavia. It can admit Palestine as a full member. And \u2014 especially since the International Criminal Court has been a farce \u2014 it can establish a tribunal to prosecute the highest level officials of the Israeli government, both civilian and military.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Boyle will be a guest on Monday on <strong>CN Live!<\/strong> at 3pm along with former British ambassador Craig Murray and analyst Alexander Mercouris to illuminate his views on the Court\u2019s decisions.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_106025\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\">\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28.png\" class=\"image-anchor\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-106025 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-1000x625.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-1000x625.png 1000w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-500x313.png 500w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-768x480.png 768w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-1536x960.png 1536w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-2048x1280.png 2048w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-260x163.png 260w, https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Screen-Shot-2024-01-26-at-23.03.28-160x100.png 160w\" alt=\"\" width=\"860\" height=\"538\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-106025\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-106025\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The judges as they filed into the courtroom on Friday. (U.N. TV Screenshot)<\/p>\n<p>____________________________________________<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px;\"><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Joe-Lauria-.png\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-226431\" src=\"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Joe-Lauria-.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" \/><\/a> Joe Lauria is editor-in-chief of <\/em>Consortium News<em> and a former correspondent for\u00a0<\/em>The Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe<em> and numerous other newspapers<\/em>, <em>including<\/em> The Montreal Gazette<em> and <\/em>The Star<em> of Johannesburg. He was an investigative reporter for the <\/em>Sunday Times <em>of London, a financial reporter for <\/em>Bloomberg News<em> and began his professional work as a 19-year old stringer for <\/em>The New York Times<em>. Email:<\/em> <a href=\"mailto:joelauria@consortiumnews.com\"><em>joelauria@consortiumnews.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/2024\/01\/25\/watch-world-court-ruling-on-israel-genocide-case\/?eType=EmailBlastContent&amp;eId=35bd8301-0564-4591-967a-a083494e87a9\" >Go to Original \u2013 consortiumnews.com<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>26 Jan 2024 &#8211; The ICJ ruled that Israel\u2019s military shall not commit acts forbidden by Article 2 of Genocide Convention but stopped short of ordering Israel to cease its military operation in Gaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":118390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[139],"tags":[1854,87,865,1643,1644,88,651,715,427,2159,1218,70,965,1025],"class_list":["post-253155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-justice","tag-crimes-against-humanity","tag-gaza","tag-genocide","tag-genocide-convention","tag-international-court-of-justice-icj","tag-israel","tag-justice","tag-massacre","tag-palestine","tag-rogue-states","tag-south-africa","tag-usa","tag-war-crimes","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=253155"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253155\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":253160,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253155\/revisions\/253160"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/118390"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=253155"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=253155"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=253155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}