The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has heard Israel’s concluding arguments, as it seeks to reject South Africa’s application for provisional measures to halt its military operations in Gaza.
Israel contends that South Africa has portrayed it as a lawless state above the law. The request to stop military operations was deemed by Israel as potentially encouraging terrorist organizations globally. Israel’s deputy attorney general, Gilad Noam, stated that South Africa had misled the court about the existence of a dispute between the two countries.
He argued that the conflict initiated by Hamas did not fall under the genocide convention, emphasizing Israel’s right to self-defense against an enemy using civilians as shields. The court will render an order on South Africa’s request in a public sitting soon.