“The accusations of genocide against Israel are absurd”, today in The Hague “is a sad day, not only for Israel, but also for those who care about the international justice system”. The Israeli ambassador in Rome, Alon Bar, tells Adnkronos, commenting on the genocide trial brought by South Africa against Israel, before the International Court of Justice in The Hague. “The term genocide is completely wrong and does not reflect what Israel is doing. It is an attempt to demonize Israel and deny it the right to defend itself”, says the diplomat, underlining how South Africa has been calling for a ceasefire “since day one “, without mentioning the hostage issue in any way.
Today is a sad day”, the terminology of genocide is used against Israel, which was coined “as an international reaction to the Jewish Holocaust”. And it is done “to make it impossible for Israel to defend itself from a terrorist attack coming from Gaza”, says Bar, recalling that Hamas has said several times that it is ready to repeat the violence of 7 October. Talking about genocide “is an absurd effort to politicize a very important international convention and to use it against Israel to avoid Israel's ability to defend itself. It is sad and terrible”, remarked the ambassador.
'we do everything possible to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza'
“We fight Hamas to make our citizens safe. It is Hamas that kills civilians and uses civilians as human shields, they are responsible for the situation in Gaza. Our goal, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, is to protect Israel and fight Hamas to avoid a future attack against Israeli civilians”, the ambassador points out. Who is keen to underline how thehe South African request for a ceasefire “does not mention the issue of the hostages”, whose seizure represents “a crime against humanity”.
“There was a ceasefire when the hostages were released, we expect there to be strong demand from the international community for their release. If in the past Hamas accepted the release of hostages in exchange for a ceasefire it is because of the Israeli military operation. For us, the release of hostages is an important part of any ceasefire call,” insists Bar.
As for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's mission in the Middle East and Washington's requests for greater protection of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, the ambassador underlines that Israel “believes it is doing everything possible” to avoid civilian casualties. “We – she adds – do not pose any obstacles to the entry into Gaza of humanitarian aid from the UN and the international community. We just have to be sure that they do not contain weapons and explosives. We try to facilitate the arrival of all help, food, medicine, water. We try to coordinate with the United States to be able to improve the arrival of aid and increase the efficiency of the UN” for its distribution.
'We appreciate the US effort to avoid escalation and create ceasefire conditions'
“We greatly appreciate the American effort, both to create the conditions for a ceasefire and to avoid the expansion of the conflict. For us, the conditions of a ceasefire are that there is no longer a threat from Hamas to Israeli citizens – explains Bar – We receive continuous attacks from Lebanon, Syria and Yemen. We would like to avoid an escalation but we must be sure that the inhabitants of northern Israel can return home safely”.
“The question of what Gaza will be like after the war is also important”, notes the ambassador, but for now “rockets continue to arrive against the Israeli population every day and in the Gaza Strip Hamas still has the military capacity to threaten Israel. We need to discuss the future of Gaza but there are also challenges for the present.”
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