An ambiguous ruling by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, does not preclude continued military operations in the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, Israeli officials said today, and one analyst said Israel's rejection of claims of "genocide" should end the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice once and for all, reported the Israeli news agency TPS, quoted by BTA.
The International Court of Justice issued an extraordinary ruling on Friday, with Lebanese judge Nawaf Salam, the court's president, calling on Israel to "immediately stop its military offensive and all other actions in the Rafah province that may put the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip in living conditions that could lead to its physical destruction, in whole or in part“.
Although the ruling was upheld by a 13-2 vote, four of the court's 15 judges interpreted it to mean that the Israel Defense Forces could continue operations in Rafah against the Palestinian group Hamas as long as the operations they are not in danger of genocide.
This opinion was expressed by the special Israeli judge for the case, Aharon Barak, and the vice-president of the IC, Julia Sebutinde of Uganda, who voted "against". Judges Georg Nolte from Germany and Bogdan Aurescu from Romania supported this interpretation.
South African judge Dire Tladi interpreted the ruling as a ban on "offensive" army operations, but leaves the door open for "defensive" activities in response to attacks by "Hamas". The remaining 10 judges did not clearly express their opinion on the matter.
“What they are asking us is not to commit genocide in Rafah. We have not committed genocide and we will not commit genocide, Tsachi Hanegbi of the National Security Service told Channel 12 news. yesterday, suggesting that Israel will continue its actions in the city of Rafah.
"Micromanaging Israel's Struggle for Survival"
"In my opinion, it does not make sense to do an in-depth analysis of a temporary order issued against the object and purpose of the Genocide Convention. The International Court of Justice should be criticized for being another political body of the United Nations that does not show any respect for law and justice," Israeli lawyer Talia Einhorn, professor of law, told Israel's government press service.
Einhorn, a tenured member of the Paris-based International Academy of Comparative Law, told TPS: "By holding that it was possible for Israel to commit genocide in Gaza, the court turned the convention on its head. Shamefully, only Julia Sebutinde, the Honorable Vice-President of the International Court of Justice, has held that in the absence of any evidence of genocide, the International Court of Justice has no jurisdiction to adjudicate and therefore no jurisdiction to issue interim injunctions. The court is not competent to micromanage Israel's struggle for survival.
"The Convention obliges each contracting state to fight against genocide. Yet when Israel was forced to protect its citizens from genocide, it found itself accused of a crime it was obligated to prevent. Israel has provided the International Court with evidence that it did everything possible, far beyond the requirements set by international law, to protect civilians from danger, Einhorn emphasized to TPS.
While Israel, she added, "fights for its own survival, calls for the evacuation of enemy civilians, provides evacuation routes and half a million tons of humanitarian aid, it cannot be said to be committing genocide." The ratio of civilian to military casualties in the Gaza Strip is among the lowest in the history of hostilities, she notes.
Rafah is located on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt and is the last bastion of "Hamas" with approximately four battalions. Israel's delegation to the International Court of Justice told the judges that of the 700 tunnels discovered in Rafah by the army, approximately 50 pass into Egypt. These tunnels are used for weapons smuggling and hostages can be taken out of the enclave through them.
On May 7, Israel took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah border crossing to prevent Hamas from to dispose of humanitarian aid supplies from Egypt.
South Africa has petitioned the International Court of Justice for an injunction against Israel's military campaign, claiming it is intended to lead to the "extermination of the population" on the Gaza Strip. On May 17, the YRA also asked the court to issue an emergency court order in Rafah, saying that Israel is committing "genocide".
Israel accuses South Africa of "distorting the truth", "abusing judicial procedures" and tries to support "Hamas" for political reasons. The Israeli delegation also claimed that South Africa was trying to get the International Court of Justice to "micromanage" the war, which is outside his jurisdiction.
At least 1,200 people were killed and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in the attacks by "Hamas" against Israeli settlements near the Gaza border on October 7. 39 of the remaining 125 hostages are believed to be dead.