Occupied Jerusalem – Israel is apprehensively awaiting a session of the International Court of Justice in The Hague next week, where it will discuss the suit brought by South Africa against the Israeli occupation forces. The suit accuses them of committing "genocide" in the Gaza Strip.
Political and legal analysts unanimously agree that the Israeli establishment fears the repercussions of the international court session, which coincides with the height of the war on the Gaza Strip, and is wary of the possibility that the deliberations and resulting decisions could mark the beginning of criminalizing Israel for committing war crimes in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
According to international law experts, this procedure in the International Court of Justice could determine the nature of the genocide charges the occupation army committed in Gaza, potentially leading to Israel's political isolation, boycotts, or sanctions against Israel or Israeli companies.
Amid fears that the Hague court might issue an immediate restraining order in its session on Thursday, January 11, commanding Tel Aviv to cease fire and military operations in the enclave, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided that Israel will appear before the international court. Additionally, Israel is considering adding an Israeli judge on its behalf, a precedent and an atypical decision.
Netanyahu is seeking international lawyers to defend Israel in The Hague against genocide charges in the Gaza Strip (Anadolu Agency)
Joint Defense Team
Netanyahu has directed the diplomatic corps, the military establishment, and the judiciary to form a joint ministerial team. This team has already begun preparing a defense brief to respond to South Africa's petition, which accuses Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip.
Anna Barsky, political affairs correspondent for the "Maariv" newspaper, quoted high-level Israeli diplomatic sources saying that all security, foreign policy, and intelligence agencies unanimously agreed on the necessity to combat what they call the "blood libel" embodied in the accusations of "genocide."
Barsky mentioned that Israel is a signatory to the "Genocide Convention." At this stage, she says, Israel has no reason to boycott the session. The blame lies with the accusers who base their claims on unfounded allegations, not on the court that is obligated to consider the lawsuit filed before it.
In a move that reflects Tel Aviv's political level concerns about the lawsuit's repercussions on all areas, Barak Ravid, political affairs correspondent for the "Walla" website, reported that Netanyahu is exploring the possibility of American lawyer Alan Dershowitz defending Israel during the listening session in The Hague next week.
Ravid explained that Israel could be represented at the court session by four lawyers, pointing out that the political level is working on finding high-profile international jurists to help convince the court of the Israeli stance and to rebut South Africa's claims and requests.
Ravid added that the Israeli government will mobilize and recruit support from different countries to endorse its narrative, noting that Netanyahu will not attend the session, but he may send a message to the court challenging the South African petition.
Israeli army chief of staff Hertzi Halevi (right) warns of the risk of an immediate court order to cease fire in Gaza (Al Jazeera)
Genocide Crimes
South Africa has requested the court to issue an interpretative order affirming that Israel is committing acts of genocide in Gaza and to act immediately to stop them. This would mean issuing an immediate provisional measure obligating the Israeli occupation army to cease fire in the enclave, as reported by the judicial affairs correspondent for "Haaretz" newspaper, Haim Mavanis.
According to Mavanis, Israel's defense team consists of representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the office of the Military Advocate General, and the National Security Council. Their current primary goal is to prevent any possibility of the court responding to South Africa's request for a restraining order to continue the fighting.
Among the steps Israel is considering, says Mavanis, is "appointing a judge on its behalf to participate in the petition hearing." According to this procedure, the respondent state representing itself before the court may add a judge to a body of fifteen judges. South Africa could also request the appointment of a judge on its behalf.
The security establishment and the Israeli Military Advocate General’s office fear that the International Court of Justice in The Hague may attribute the crimes of genocide in the Gaza Strip to Israel.
He mentioned that a senior legal figure dealing with the matter has warned top Israeli military officials, including Chief of Staff Hertzi Halevi, about the real risk of the court issuing an order commanding Israel to immediately stop firing in Gaza.
Extreme Statements
According to the lawsuit brought forward by South Africa, the allegations regarding Israel's intentions to commit genocide in the Gaza Strip are supported by quotations from many top Israeli officials, from President Yitzhak Herzog to Minister of Heritage Amichai Eliyahu.
Legal international expert attorney Nick Kaufman, who represents clients in The Hague courts, says that Israel should claim that such statements by Minister Eliyahu suggesting that "dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza is one of the ways" and others are populist and aimed at an extreme audience and have no relation to Israeli policy.
Meanwhile, international law and human rights expert attorney Michael Sfard accused senior officials in the Israeli judiciary of not acting against the extreme statements of Israeli officials, calling on the government's legal advisor Gali Baharav Meira to take action against ministers and Knesset members who advocate for ethnic cleansing and genocide.
In his turn, Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi stated, "Israel has been a signatory to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide for decades, and certainly we will not boycott the debate and deliberations of the international court. We shall appear before the court and refute the absurd petition that constitutes a blood libel against Israel."
To justify the military operations carried out by the Israeli occupation forces in the Gaza Strip, targeting civilians, Hanegbi said, "A similar cruelty was used against the citizens of Israel last October 7. The groundless lawsuit against the right of the victim to defend itself filed in the International Court is baseless."
