Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel)

Full text: Order of 26 January 2024

Individual judge opinions

All the documents relating to this case are on its ICJ webpage

@aaro@hexbear.net provided an overview in the comments

The full text of the operative clause of the Order reads as follows: “For these reasons, THE COURT , Indicates the following provisional measures:

(1) By fifteen votes to two, The State of Israel shall, in accordance with its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to Palestinians in Gaza, take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of this Convention, in particular:

(a) killing members of the group;

(b) causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; and

(d) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

[...]

(2) By fifteen votes to two, The State of Israel shall ensure with immediate effect that its military does not commit any acts described in point 1 above;

[...]

(3) By sixteen votes to one, The State of Israel shall take all measures within its power to prevent and punish the direct and public incitement to commit genocide in relation to members of the Palestinian group in the Gaza Strip;

[...]

(4) By sixteen votes to one, The State of Israel shall take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip;

[...]

(5) By fifteen votes to two, The State of Israel shall take effective measures to prevent the destruction and ensure the preservation of evidence related to allegations of acts within the scope of Article II and Article III of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide against members of the Palestinian group in the Gaza Strip;

[...]

(6) By fifteen votes to two, The State of Israel shall submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to this Order within one month as from the date of this Order.

omissions by "[...]" are just the names of each judge and whether they approved or dissented.

  • glans [it/its]
    hexagon
    ·
    edit-2
    8 months ago

    possibly wrong see comment below

    spoiler

    I think it is concluding a train of thought which begins a little prior.

    1: is the material situation on the scale that genocide can be considered? YES

    There is a brief overview of the extreme violence. Including para 49 which quotes five paragraphs from UNRWA, “The Gaza Strip: 100 days of death, destruction and displacement” followed by the WHO, other orgs etc. Including:

    “Gaza has become a place of death and despair."

    " 93% of the population in Gaza is facing crisis levels of hunger.. Starvation, destitution and death are evident"

    "the largest displacement of the Palestinian people since 1948"

    It is concise but compelling. Anyone should read these pages if you haven't. Zero ambiguity. In numbers and suffering, the scale is sufficient.

    2: Is there a genocidal vibe? YES

    Then in 51, on to the immaterial component of genocide. During the hearing, Israel casually dismissed assertions that the evidence "genocidal intent" SA provided was just some random celebrities with no authority and they didn't speak for the nation. ICJ provides "statements made by senior Israeli officials" (Gallant, Herzog and Katz). They are dehumanizing, describing collective punishment, and explaining how they plan to enact the punishment via the military:

    "We are fighting human animals"

    "It is an entire nation out there that is responsible. It is not true this rhetoric about civilians not aware, not involved. ... we will fight until we’ll break their backbone"

    "They will not receive a drop of water or a single battery until they leave the world."

    Then UN statements from Oct-Nov 2023 indicating that the resemblance to genocide connected to the government has been publicized by credible orgs for a while now and surely Israel is aware:

    "discernibly genocidal and dehumanising rhetoric coming from senior Israeli government officials"

    "racist hate speech and dehumanization directed at Palestinians"

    3: why these orders in this situation

    54 concludes by saying the situation is "plausible". I interpret as "fucking obvious". In 56 they summarize SA's arguments about why the punishment fits the crime. 2 reasons:

    to ensure compliance by Israel with its obligations under the Genocide Convention

    protecting the integrity of the proceedings before the Court and South Africa’s right to have its claim fairly adjudicated

    Which is saying the genocide is going on now and we need to stop it now. And a legal argument about prejudice means that if you don't take this action now, it will be impossible to do it later. So it would be "pre judged" against the interest of one party (Palestinians). Not articulated but clear is the reason: if Israel succeeds in it's stated objective to "eliminate everything" (Gallant) then there will be no witnesses, no evidence, and no population left to obtain the judgement. There is urgency.

    4: why israel is full of shit

    Then to 57 which you quoted above. Most key is the Israel argument that

    the measures requested go beyond what is necessary to protect rights on an interim basis and therefore have no link with the rights sought to be protected

    they think it would be unfair for them to be hobbled as is requested. They say they are engaged in a legitimate war just like many other nations have done and they should not be singled out. Even though there are deaths and suffering, it is an unavoidable part of obtaining military objectives. It is not motivated by deep hatred of all Palestinians. And this hatred does not fuel them to engage in activities whose only goal is to eradicate them.

    As per the logic described above, the ICJ disagrees with Israel:

    Therefore, a link exists between the rights claimed by South Africa that the Court has found to be plausible, and at least some of the provisional measures requested.

    The court is drawing a strong connection between the heinous shit the politicians are saying and the outcome of tremendous suffering at the hands of the military. It is quite decisive considering how short the hearings were.

    • What_Religion_R_They [none/use name]
      ·
      edit-2
      8 months ago

      As per the logic described above, the ICJ disagrees with Israel:

      They did not grant the first two provisional measures, though, which is what Israel asked for in paragraph 57.

      • glans [it/its]
        hexagon
        ·
        8 months ago

        well the question was "any thoughts" not "any logical/factual thoughts" lol

        i put the whole thing in a spoiler pending further review.