South Africa praised the United Nations’ top court’s decision on Friday that Israel should do everything possible to prevent genocide in Gaza.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague issued its ruling in a landmark case brought by Pretoria, ordering Israel to allow humanitarian access to Palestinian territory.
“Today marks a decisive victory for the international rule of law and a significant milestone in the search for justice for the Palestinian people,” South Africa’s ministry of foreign affairs said.
“The decision is a momentous one,” it added, thanking the court for its “swift ruling”.
South Africa has accused Israel of violating the 1948 UN Genocide Convention, established in the aftermath of World War II and the Holocaust, during its military campaign in Gaza, which was launched by Hamas attacks on October 7.
The court did not rule on whether Israel is committing genocide, but instead issued emergency orders while it investigates the broader allegations, which is expected to take years.
‘Plausibly genocidal’
“Third States are now on notice of the existence of a serious risk of genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza,” the ministry of foreign affairs said.
“This necessarily imposes an obligation on all States to cease funding and facilitating Israel’s military actions, which are plausibly genocidal.”
After judges read the order, President Cyril Ramaphosa and the ruling council of the African National Congress party erupted in cheers, singing, and dancing.
Ramaphosa was scheduled to deliver a speech on the verdict later Friday.
The ANC’s National Executive Committee halted its meeting to watch a webcast from the court, and live footage from the event showed senior party and government officials rejoicing.
The issue, and their government’s role in it, has sparked popular attention in South Africa, where many people sympathize with the Palestinians’ struggle for independence.
AFP correspondents observed crowds gathering in Cape Town and Pretoria to see the verdict, which was broadcast in its entirety on state television.
As the ICJ judge announced the provisional measures, cheering erupted from a varied crowd of approximately 30 people gathered in a Cape Town community center, some of whom were wearing Palestinian-themed earrings and colors.
“We are discussing the extent to which it can have an impact… For now it is a step in the right direction,” said medical student Kwezi Zwane, 24, as attendees embraced and commented on the ruling.
The ICJ’s rulings are binding on all parties but it has no mechanism to enforce them. Sometimes they are completely ignored.
Anti-apartheid struggle
“South Africa sincerely hopes that Israel will not act to frustrate the application of this order, as it has publicly threatened to do, but that it will instead act to comply with it fully, as it is bound to do,” the ministry said.
Pretoria has long been an outspoken backer of the Palestinian cause, with the ANC frequently tying it to its own struggle against apartheid.
The Hamas strike on October 7 killed around 1,140 persons in Israel, the majority of them were civilians, according to an AFP calculation based on official Israeli numbers.
According to the Hamas government’s health ministry, Israeli bombardments and military offensives have killed at least 26,083 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since then, with around 70% of them being women, young children, and teenagers.