“By legally intervening in South Africa’s case, Ireland will be asking the ICJ to broaden its interpretation of what constitutes the commission of genocide by a State.”
Ireland has announced it would intervene in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) following the government’s approval.
“There has been a collective punishment of the Palestinian people through the intent and impact of military actions of Israel in Gaza, leaving 44,000 dead and millions of civilians displaced,” Foreign Minister Micheál Martin said on Wednesday.
A quick update on today’s Cabinet meeting and government formation talks. pic.twitter.com/LnAMkH1by0
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) December 11, 2024
“By legally intervening in South Africa’s case, Ireland will be asking the ICJ to broaden its interpretation of what constitutes the commission of genocide by a State,” Martin noted.
He stated that Ireland was “concerned that a very narrow interpretation of what constitutes genocide leads to a culture of impunity in which the protection of civilians is minimized.”
“Ireland’s view of the Convention is broader and prioritizes the protection of civilian life – as a committed supporter of the Convention, the Government will promote that interpretation in its intervention in this case,” Martin continued.
Dublin’s ‘Consistency’
The Irish cabinet also approved intervention in The Gambia’s case against Myanmar under the same Convention.
Today the Government gave approval for Ireland to intervene in South Africa’s International Court of Justice case against Israel under the Genocide Convention. pic.twitter.com/raOoj8xMrG
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) December 11, 2024
Martin said intervening in both cases “demonstrates the consistency of Ireland’s approach to the interpretation and application of the Genocide Convention.”
‘Barbaric War’
The case accusing Israel of genocide was brought by South Africa Israel in December last year and culminated in the filing of the memorial at the UN’s highest court in The Hague in October.
South Africa’s presidency said in a statement that the memorial “contains evidence which shows how the government of Israel has violated the genocide convention by promoting the destruction of Palestinians living in Gaza.”
‘Barbaric War’ – South Africa Demands End to Israel’s War on Gaza
President Cyril Ramaphosa said in an address to the Algerian parliament last week that Israel’s “barbaric war” against the people of Gaza must end “and we demand that it should end now.”
Staggering Death Toll
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza.
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
At least 15 Palestinians were killed and others wounded in the Israeli bombing of a house west of the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip.
The Jenin Battalion of the Al-Quds Brigades announced its fighters blew up an occupation military vehicle with a pre-prepared explosive… pic.twitter.com/8KxPzAl0Lq
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) December 12, 2024
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 44,835 Palestinians have been killed, and 106,365 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7, 2023.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
Millions Displaced
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Later in the war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began moving from the south to central Gaza in a constant search for safety.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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