THE HAGUE: The UN鈥檚 top court said it will rule Friday on a request by South Africa to order Israel to implement a ceasefire in Gaza.
South Africa has petitioned the International Court of Justice for emergency measures to order Israel to 鈥渃ease its military operations in the Gaza Strip鈥� including in Rafah city, where it is pressing an offensive.
The rulings of the ICJ, which rules on disputes between states, are binding but it has no power to enforce them 鈥� it has ordered Russia to halt its invasion of Ukraine to no avail, for example.
But a ruling against Israel would increase the international legal pressure after the International Criminal Court鈥檚 top prosecutor said Monday he was seeking arrest warrants for top Israeli and Hamas leaders.
In hearings last week, South Africa charged that what it described as Israel鈥檚 鈥済enocide鈥� in Gaza had hit a 鈥渘ew and horrific stage鈥� with its assault on Rafah, the last part of Gaza to face a ground invasion.
The Rafah campaign is 鈥渢he last step in the destruction of Gaza and its Palestinian people,鈥� argued Vaughan Lowe, a lawyer for South Africa.
鈥淚t was Rafah that brought South Africa to the court. But it is all Palestinians as a national, ethnical and racial group who need the protection from genocide that the court can order,鈥� he added.
Lawyers for Israel hit out at South Africa鈥檚 case as being 鈥渢otally divorced鈥� from reality that made a 鈥渕ockery鈥� of the 1948 UN Genocide Convention it is accused of breaching.
鈥淐alling something a genocide again and again does not make it genocide. Repeating a lie does not make it true,鈥� top lawyer for Israel Gilad Noam said.
鈥淭here is a tragic war going on but there is no genocide,鈥� he added.
Israeli troops began their ground assault on parts of Rafah early this month, defying international opposition including from top ally the United States, which voiced fears for the more than one million civilians trapped in the city.
Israel has ordered mass evacuations from the city, where it has vowed to eliminate Hamas鈥檚 tunnel network and its remaining fighters.
The UN says more than 800,000 people have fled.