Israeli President Isaac Herzog said on Tuesday “there is nothing more atrocious and preposterous” than a lawsuit filed in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel of genocide against Palestinians in its Gaza offensive.
The case, brought by South Africa, is due to begin hearings on Thursday and focus on the many civilians among the more than 23,000 people that Gaza health authorities say have been killed in the three-month-old war between Israel and Hamas.
Speaking to visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Herzog accused South Africa of hypocrisy for bringing the case, and thanked Washington for its support of Israel, which says it makes utmost efforts to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza.
“Actually our enemies, Hamas, in their charter, call for the destruction of our nation, the State of Israel — the only nation-state of the Jewish people,” Herzog said.
In a 2017 document, Hamas dropped its long-standing call for Israel's destruction, but said it still rejected the country's right to exist and backed armed struggle against it.
“We will be there at the International Court of Justice and will present proudly our case of using self-defence under our most inherent right under international humanitarian law,” said Herzog.
Israel launched its offensive after Hamas fighters carried out an October 7 cross-border rampage in which Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 240 abducted.
Since then, Israeli forces have laid much of the enclave to waste, and nearly all its 2.3-million people have been driven from their homes at least once, causing a humanitarian catastrophe.
In making its case, South Africa names Herzog and other Israeli officials it says have expressed genocidal intent against Palestinians.
It cites remarks made by the president days after the Hamas attack, in which he said it was not only militants but “an entire nation” that was responsible for the violence and that Israel will fight “until we break their backbone.”
Israel's attorney-general and state attorney released a statement late on Tuesday saying that Israel and its security forces were “all committed to act in a accordance with international law, including the law of armed conflict.”
It said statements calling for intentional harm to civilians may amount to a criminal offence and that Israeli law enforcement authorities were examining several such cases.
Israel blames Hamas, which has ruled blockaded Gaza since 2007, for harm to civilians there by operating among them, which the fighters deny. It insists it will press ahead until Hamas is dismantled and 132 remaining hostages recovered.
Israel must win, Herzog said, “because it's a war that affects international values and the values of the free world”.
As of Tuesday, the Israeli military said 182 soldiers had been killed in Gaza fighting.
Reuters
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