Genocide trial against Israel gives hope to Palestinians to stop the war

The trial at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in which South Africa accuses Israel of genocide in the Gaza Strip gives hope to Palestinians that the UN court will force a ceasefire as a precautionary measure, after months of the deadliest offensive in its history.

However, they do not believe that any ruling will stop the war permanently, or at most increase international pressure.

“South Africa made us very happy by presenting its complaint for genocide before the court, generating global repercussions against Israel. It is something,” he told EFE Mahmud, a young man from the city of Ramallah, the de facto capital of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in the occupied West Bank, where the war is not suffered directly, but it does impact and sadden its population in a peak of regional violence.

After South Africa and Israel presented their arguments last week in two separate hearings before the ICJ at its headquarters in The Haguethe court's judges are expected to rule within weeks on whether to impose precautionary measures on the Jewish state.

This was requested by South Africa, which demands “immediate suspension of military activities” in Gaza to stop what it sees as violations of the Genocide Convention by Israel in its war against Hamas.

(We invite you to continue reading: Israel announces end of the 'intensive phase' of the war in northern Gaza: what is coming).

This has already caused more than 24,000 deaths in the Strip, 70% of them women and children.; While Israel denies the accusation of genocide and attacks South Africa, it sides with the Islamist group, which on October 7 killed around 1,200 people and kidnapped around 250 on Israeli soil in the attack that sparked the war.

The initiative of the African country gives some hope to the Palestinian population in one of the darkest stages of its historyand although many Palestinians in Gaza hardly know about it due to the telecommunications blackout and isolation from the outside world, it did have an impact in the West Bank or Jerusalem.

“The overwhelming majority of Palestinians expect the ICJ to issue an order calling for an immediate ceasefire to end the massacre of civilians in Gaza,” Khalil Shikaki, director of the Palestinian Center for Political Research and Surveys, tells EFE.

He also believes that most Palestinians see Israel's actions in Gaza as evidence of an ongoing genocide.

“The number of civilians killed, the restrictions on access to water or food, the attacks on entire families” and the widespread devastation, all of this “is taken by Palestinians as evidence that Israel is committing atrocities and genocide in Gaza,” he says. .

This is also perceived by Maha Abdallah, a Palestinian lawyer and human rights expert, who points out that with the steps taken at the ICJ, “many Palestinians felt that at least they had been given some recognitionand it was very important that South Africa did it, a people who are still trying to overcome apartheid and oppression.

“Being Palestinians and when we never really had justice under international law, this time South Africa gave us hope, and I think there is an option for the court to order to stop the genocide,” Shuruq Asad, spokesperson for the Palestinian Journalists Union, tells EFE.

If the court does not impose measures calling for a halt to the Israeli offensive, “This will show that everyone is a partner in this, and it will be an attack on what remains of humanity on the planet”he warned.

Beyond asking for an end to the military campaign, South Africa demands that the court impose measures that allow the entry of more humanitarian aid into Gaza, under a rigid Israeli siege, which only authorizes access to food, basic supplies, fuel, water or medicine. in a limited and insufficient way, which has caused a serious humanitarian crisis, marked by famine or the spread of contagious diseases.

(Also: Missile attack against a prison for prisoners in Syria provokes an escape attempt).

Although the orders of the highest UN court are mandatory for implementationit has no mechanisms to enforce them, and few believe that Israel considers abiding by them.

“Israel will not comply with any court decision or obey a ceasefire order,” Shikaki predicts. In fact, its Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, asserted on Saturday that the war against Hamas will continue “to the end” and will not be stopped by the ICJ process.

Given this, the Palestinians believe that any measure by the court will not have direct implications on the ground, but “it will increase pressure on Israel to end up agreeing to a ceasefire,” adds Shikaki.

An order demanding an end to the offensive could “make reconsider the position” from the United States, Germany, Great Britain or France, “which until now have not supported a truce,” he points out.

In the opinion of Abdallah, familiar with processes such as the current one, the ICJ “will surely not order a total cessation of Israel's military operation”, but “a limitation of the offensive”, and even if it is not carried out, this will exert ” “greater pressure” on Israel and could further deteriorate its international image

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*With information from EFE

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