A disastrous scenario emerging from Gaza

For more than 100 days now, Israel's genocidal war on Gaza has propelled the Middle East into new orbits of death, destruction, and ever-rising fears of mayhem. Rami G. Khouri, Distinguished Fellow at the American University of Beirut has taken the opportunity to describe Washington's role as one of delusion, denial, dishonest, distortion, and diversion. In this context it has also been suggested that it will continue to have disastrous consequences for the region.
It all started after Hamas fighters crossed into southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 240 people hostage in the terror attack-- something which needs to be described as a criminal offence. Israel began its military campaign after that to wipe out Hamas.
The Gaza Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between fighters and civilians in its casualty totals, recently indicated that the number of deaths from Israel's military campaign has risen to at least 25,100, with more than 60,000 others injured. This figure includes more than 10,000 children and women. Irrespective of the humanitarian consequences Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue his country's war against Hamas until victory. Since the start of Israel's ground operation in late October, more than 85 per cent of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have been displaced due to Israel's air and ground offensive, and vast swaths of the territory have been levelled.
On January 11 and 12 a legal case and public hearings were initiated by South Africa in the International Court of Justice in the Hague against Israel regarding Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The delegation of South Africa was led by HE Mr Vusimuzi Madonsela, Ambassador of the Republic of South Africa to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as Agent, and Mr Cornelius Scholtz, Legal Counsellor, Embassy of the Republic of South Africa in the Netherlands, as Co-Agent. The delegation of Israel was led by Mr. Gilad Noam, Deputy Attorney General for International Law, Ministry of Justice of the State of Israel, Mr Tal Becker, Legal Adviser, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, and Ms Tamar Kaplan Tourgeman, Principal Deputy Legal Adviser of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, as Co-Agents.
At the end of the hearings, the Agent of South Africa and the Co-Agent of Israel made the following requests to the Court:
For South Africa--
"South Africa, as a State party to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, respectfully requests the Court, as a matter of extreme urgency, pending the Court's determination of this case on the merits, to indicate the following provisional measures in relation to the Palestinian people as a group protected by the Genocide Convention. These measures are directly linked to the rights that form the subject matter of South Africa's dispute with Israel:
(1) The State of Israel shall immediately suspend its military operations in and against Gaza;
(2) The State of Israel shall ensure that any military or irregular armed units which may be directed, supported or influenced by it, as well as any organizations and persons which may be subject to its control, direction or influence, take no steps in furtherance of the military operations referred to point (1) above;
(3) The Republic of South Africa and the State of Israel shall each, in accordance with their obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, in relation to the Palestinian people, take all reasonable measures within their power to prevent genocide;
(4) 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 the Palestinian people as a group protected by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, desist from the commission of any and all acts within the scope of Article II of the Convention, in particular: (a) killing members of the group; (b) causing serious bodily or mental harm to the 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;
(5) The State of Israel shall, pursuant to point (4) (c) above, in relation to Palestinians, desist from, and take all measures within its power including the rescinding of relevant orders, of restrictions and/or of prohibitions to prevent: (a) the expulsion and forced displacement from their homes; (b) the deprivation of (i) access to adequate food and water; (ii) access to humanitarian assistance, including access to adequate fuel, shelter, clothes, hygiene and sanitation; (iii) medical supplies and assistance; and (c) the destruction of Palestinian life in Gaza;
(6) The State of Israel shall, in relation to Palestinians, ensure that its military, as well as any irregular armed units or individuals which may be directed, supported or otherwise influenced by it and any organisations and persons which may be subject to its control, direction or influence, do not commit any acts described in (4) and (5) above, or engage in direct and public incitement to commit genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, attempt to commit genocide, or complicity in genocide, and insofar as they do engage therein, that steps are taken towards their punishment pursuant to Articles I, II, III and IV of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide;
(7) 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 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; to that end, the State of Israel shall not act to deny or otherwise restrict access by fact-finding missions, international mandates and other bodies to Gaza to assist in ensuring the preservation and retention of said evidence;
(8) The State of Israel shall submit a report to the Court on all measures taken to give effect to this Order within one week, as from the date of this Order, and thereafter at such regular intervals as the Court shall order, until a final decision on the case is rendered by the Court, and that such reports shall be published by the Court;
(9) The State of Israel shall refrain from any action and shall ensure that no action is taken which might aggravate or extend the dispute before the Court or make it more difficult to resolve."
In response Israel observed that: "In accordance with Article 60, paragraph 2, of the Rules of Court, for the reasons given during the hearing of 12 January, 2024 and any other reasons the Court might deem appropriate, the State of Israel hereby requests the Court to: (1) Reject the request for the indication of provisional measures submitted by South Africa; and (2) Remove the case from the General List."
Israeli prime minister Netanyahu said at a news conference late Saturday that Israel will not be deterred by accusations that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians. "No one will stop us, not The Hague, not the Axis of Evil, no one," he said, referring to Hamas fighting Israel in Gaza, Iran-backed Hezbollah militants who have been firing on Israel from Lebanon, and Houthi militias who have been launching drones and missiles to attack commercial vessels in the Red Sea as a show of support to Hamas.
Israel has also argued that Hamas's attack on army outposts and surrounding villages in southern Israel - as well as the taking of hundreds of captives - on October 7 started the Gaza war, and that Israel has the right to defend itself under international law. Tal Becker, an advocate for the Israeli team, told the court that the Genocide Convention was drawn up in the aftermath of the mass killing of Jews in the Holocaust and that the phrase "never again" is one of "the highest moral obligations" for Israel. By requesting an interim order against Israel's invasion, Becker said, South Africa is trying to deny Israel the opportunity to meet its obligations to the captives taken and to the Israelis displaced after the October 7 attacks from communities near the border with Gaza.
Bangladesh, very correctly, has observed that it stands in support of South Africa's application instituting proceedings against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Foreign Ministry has reiterated that the issue concerns violation by Israel of its obligations under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide Convention) in relation to Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip.
Bangladesh has consequently said that it also supported South Africa's request for the indication of provisional measures, which included requests for the suspension of all military operations in and against Gaza and allowing safe, adequate, and unimpeded humanitarian aid into all areas of the enclave. The provisional measures requested were both necessary and concrete steps required to end the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, It has also been pointed out that the ongoing attacks by the Israeli Defence Forces have claimed the lives of thousands of innocent Palestinian civilians, the majority of whom are women and children. Bangladesh said it considered these deliberate acts of aggression a blatant disregard for and violation of international law, including the Genocide Convention and human rights. It also, as a state party to the convention, has called on all States to respect their obligations under the Genocide Convention to prevent and punish the crime of genocide. Bangladesh has also reiterated its calls for an immediate ceasefire and rapid, safe and unhindered provision of life-saving assistance, to Gaza.
It has also reiterated its previous calls for an end to Israel's occupation of Palestine and for a lasting and permanent solution that would see the establishment of a sovereign and independent Palestinian State along pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
In this regard it would be worthwhile to reiterate that, if after hearing the full case the Court finds that Israel is committing genocide, this obligates not only Israel but also countries around the world to act to stop genocide. First, according to the ICJ, every UN member State must undertake to comply with a decision of the ICJ in any case to which it is a party. If they do not comply, the other party may go to the UN Security Council which may take measures to give effect to the judgment. This, of course, can also take different forms including by imposing an arms embargo on Israel, boycotting and sanctioning Israel, and prosecuting war criminals. [The International Court of Justice (ICJ), however, issued Israel with six orders in relation to its bombardment of Gaza on Friday, but stopped short of calling for a full ceasefire. The ICJ confirmed that it does have jurisdiction to hear the case submitted by South Africa and issued six emergency orders to Israel. The first one is Israel must take all possible measures to prevent acts as outlined in Article 2 of the 1948 Genocide Convention. This entails not killing members of a particular group (in this case, Palestinians), not causing physical or psychological harm to members of that group, not inflicting living conditions which are calculated to bring about the end of the existence of a people, and not carrying out actions designed to prevent births within that group of people.]
However, it appears to be unfortunate that despite the US observing that there is 'no way' to solve Israel's long-term security challenges and rebuild Gaza without Palestinian statehood, Netanyahu has reiterated rejection of the Palestinian State after the Gaza war.

Muhammad Zamir, a former Ambassador, is an analyst specialised in foreign affairs, right to information and good governance.
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