OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that his country is determined to pursue the genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), noting that more evidence will be presented next month. South Africa filed the case last December, asserting that the Israeli war on Gaza violates the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Israel has denied this allegation.
On Friday, Ramaphosa told reporters when asked about the case: “We are stubborn,” affirming his determination “to move forward with our case.” South Africa is set to submit a statement of facts and evidence to the court next month to support its case, with President Ramaphosa indicating that preparations are underway for a massive volume of hundreds and hundreds of pages.
He continued, “We continue to say that genocide must stop, there must be a ceasefire, and similarly, there should be a release of hostages.”
Several countries, including Colombia, Libya, Mexico, Spain, Turkey, and recently Chile, have joined South Africa in the case.
Hamas welcomes Chile’s request to join South Africa’s case against Israel genocide
Meanwhile, the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, welcomed the Republic of Chile’s request to the ICJ “to join the lawsuit filed by the Republic of South Africa against the Zionist entity, which is committing brutal genocide against our Palestinian people.” The Movement said in a press release that “this step reaffirms Chile’s humanitarian positions, its alignment with the values of justice, and its rejection of blatant violations of international law, as well as what our people are facing in Gaza at the hands of the extremist Zionist fascist regime.”
Hamas appreciated the supportive stance of Chilean President Gabriel Boric regarding the rights of our Palestinian people and their struggle for freedom and self-determination to establish their state. The Movement called on all countries worldwide “to join the genocide case against the Zionist entity at the International Court of Justice and to escalate all forms of pressure on it to stop its brutal war against our Palestinian people and to prevent its leaders from escaping punishment for their crimes against humanity.”
This comes after a telegram by Israel’s Foreign Ministry, the details of which were published by the American news website Axios, revealed earlier this month that Israel was pressuring members of the United States Congress to press the African state to drop its case before the ICJ.
According to the site, the Israeli Foreign Ministry sent a confidential telegram last Monday to the Israeli embassy in Washington and to all Israeli consulates in the United States regarding the case filed by South Africa against it at the ICJ. The site quoted Israeli officials as saying they want members of Congress to make it clear to South Africa that there will be consequences for continuing to pursue the case.
The officials stated that Tel Aviv hopes the new coalition government in South Africa will adopt a different approach toward Israel and the war on Gaza.
The African state has until October 28 to submit its arguments to the UN’s highest court to continue the case against Israel regarding violations of the Genocide Convention during the war on Gaza.
The ICJ has not yet begun substantive discussions on South Africa’s genocide allegations, but it is expected to do so in the coming months.
