By Kouthar Sambo
The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) approached the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for Israel’s war crimes in Gaza, as the Israeli forces increased the aggression in the Gaza Strip, killing dozens of innocent civilians in Palestine, most of whom are women and children.
Speaking on VOC’s Holiday Shift on Wednesday, Professor of Sociology and Director of the Centre for Social Change at the University of Johannesburg Patrick Bond said he was not expecting this move.
“This is part of an important leadership role of the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and civil society. There has not been such a move until South Africa approached the ICJ, which is the United Nation’s (UN) highest court,” explained Bond.
“Instead of breaking diplomatic ties, we see President Cyril Ramaphosa making a relatively formalistic set of moves within the international criminal court and war crimes conviction. The Genocide conviction is heavier than international criminal court conviction for war.”
Bond further highlighted that Western allies and biases may overpower the move.
“Due to the power imbalances in the world, it may not necessarily work with Palestinians because there are too many Western biases,” added Bond.
“I would not raise expectations just yet because we have had our disappointments, including convictions against Vladimir Putin, which was never followed up on to stop him from continuing the invasion,” highlighted Bond.
In response to South Africa’s application, Israel appeared before the Hague-based International Court of Justice to defend itself.
According to media reports, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that the aggression in Gaza is that of a “moral” one, thereby shifting blame onto the Palestinian Resistance Hamas, who apparently “perpetrates genocide.”
“It (Hamas) would murder all of us if it could. In contrast, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) is acting as morally as possible,” claimed Netanyahu in a cabinet meeting on Sunday.
Photo: QudsNen/X
* Courtesy of DIRCO on its X page, below are the proceedings against the State of Israel as it requests the Court to indicate provisional measures.
