‘I hope Israel will play the ball, not the player’: Thuli Madonsela as Jewish state responds to SA genocide case

Former public protector Thuli Madonsela says she hopes Israel's legal team, arguing at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Friday in response to a genocide charge it has labelled as “hypocrisy levelled by South Africa over Gaza war”, will concentrate on the prolonged war instead of those who dragged them to court. 

South Africa approached the ICJ at The Hague, in the Netherlands, in December last year requesting it to order the suspension of military operations in Gaza, arguing Israel was committing genocide against the Palestinians. The first hearing of the case was on Thursday, when six lawyers made presentations for South Africa. The spotlight has now shifted to Israel's lawyers, who will respond to the genocide charge. 

Madonsela said she hoped Israel in its defence would focus on the Gaza war, which has claimed thousands of civilian lives, and not South Africa.

“I hope Israel will play the ball, not the player. South Africa’s motivation or affinities are immaterial,” Madonsela said in wake of Israel lambasting South Africa for bringing the case. 

“South Africa’s legal team was exemplary in sticking to what international law says on genocide,” she said. The South African team had analysed the legal situation carefully, applied the law to the to the facts, reached a firm conclusion, and made recommendations for provisional relief. “Israel should do the same and eschew insults.”

Israeli foreign affairs minister Lior Haiat has described South Africa's case against his country as one of the “greatest shows of hypocrisy in history”.

“South Africa, which is functioning as the legal arm of the Hamas terrorist organisation, utterly distorted the reality in Gaza after the October 7 massacre and completely ignored the fact that Hamas terrorists infiltrated Israel [and] murdered, executed, massacred, raped and abducted Israeli citizens, simply because they were Israelis, in an attempt to carry out genocide,” Haiat said.

However, South Africa in its application to the court stated it condemned the violations of international law by all parties, including the direct targeting of Israeli civilians and other nationals, as well as the hostage-taking by Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups. 

South African minister of justice Ronald Lamola refuted Israel's claims that in bringing the case the country intended to protect Hamas.

“We have presented a case on behalf of the government of the Republic of South Africa, and we are doing so on behalf of a number of Palestinians — kids, women and the elderly — who are being killed in Gaza. We are not presenting any case on behalf of Hamas. We do not have any mandate from Hamas,” Lamola said.

“Our case is not against the Jews as the people — it is against the [genocidal] actions of the state of Israel that are [being] committed in Gaza.” 

Here are some reactions from social media:

TimesLIVE