South Africa moving forward with genocide case against Israel

South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor has stressed that her country is moving forward with the genocide case it had filed against Israel before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), stressing that the massacres committed by Israel are a reality being witnessed by the entire world.

“We want to apply the Genocide Convention to Israel regarding its behaviour against the Palestinians,” she said.

Pandor described the situation in Palestine as apartheid, affirming that Pretoria seeks to activate the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination to investigate Israel’s behaviour.

On Friday, South African Minister of Justice Ronald Lamola confirmed that the genocide case filed by his country against Israel at the ICJ helped influence public opinion and increase international support for the Palestinian cause.

Read: South Africa rejects Israel’s accusations against UN institutions

On Thursday, the South African legal delegation called on the ICJ to take immediate steps to stop the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip, saying in its plea that “nothing justifies genocide, not even the right to self-defence.”

The delegation stressed that Palestinian civilians are being pushed from one place to another in the Gaza Strip and the court must immediately act to stop Israel, calling for the necessity to deliver aid and save the lives of people in the enclave.

On Friday, the Israel legal team responded to the arguments brought forward by South Africa, claiming they were lies.