Nations Endorse South Africa’s Genocide Charge

The governments of Türkiye and Malaysia announced Jan. 3 their support for the South African government’s Application to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, asking that Israel be investigated for crimes of genocide against the people of Palestine. They were joined by Jordan the next day.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) of 57 nations had endorsed South Africa’s action Dec. 30.

A spokesperson for the South African Foreign Ministry told the Jan. 3 Jerusalem Post that it expects other countries to soon follow Türkiye’s and Malaysia’s lead. The newspaper quoted the Turkish Foreign Ministry saying, “It is expected that within the framework of this application, the ICJ will decide on provisional measures involving those to stop Israel’s attacks on Gaza.”

The Malaysian Ministry of Foreign Affairs had said Jan. 2 that it—

welcomes the application by South Africa instituting proceedings against Israel … concerning the violations by Israel of its obligations under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in relation to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

On Jan. 4, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Al-Safadi declared Jordan’s support for South Africa’s Application and told the Jordanian parliament,

There are 43 Arab and Islamic countries that are members of the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide, and one of the decisions of the joint Arab-Islamic summit was to assign the general secretariats of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to prepare legal files, and we are now working on formulating a joint effort to follow up on this file.

Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder and head of the international Schiller Institutes, told an International Peace Coalition meeting Jan. 5:

It will be an important international stage, and South Africa has a high moral standing because of its successful fight against the apartheid regime. It’s also characteristic of our time that it is an African country, and a member of the BRICS, which is taking the lead in bringing the crime to world attention, and not a member of the West, which has abandoned moral leadership on these matters.

The Middle East Eye on Jan. 4 summarized a report by David Hearst, its Editor-in-Chief:

“As the world watches, the fate of international justice hinges on this crucial case,” says David Hearst, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Middle East Eye. South Africa has filed a meticulous application at the International Court of Justice, accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza. Backed by evidence, the 84-page document details Israel’s alleged genocidal actions, from the scale of killings exceeding 22,000, to the deprivation of food, water and healthcare in Gaza. [back to text]