Israel calls South Africa's genocide accusation 'absurd' at UN court

Israel firmly rejected on Friday the accusations, brought by South Africa to the International Court of Justice in The Hague, that its actions in Gaza amount to genocide.

South Africa's claim is "unfounded" and "absurd," said Tal Becker, legal advisor to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

Victims of the Gaza war and the suffering of the civilian population were solely the responsibility of the terrorist organization Hamas. "Israel is at war with Hamas, not the Palestinian people," he told the judges.

As the proceeding ended on Friday at the UN's highest court, demonstrations were held by hundreds of Israeli and Palestinian supporters.

The ICJ is being asked to rule on two issues. The hearings that concluded on Friday concern an urgent application by South Africa for the ICJ judges to order an end to Israeli military action in Gaza. The second issue, whether Israel committed genocide, will take much longer.

The court is to decide as quickly as possible on the military action issue, court president Joan Donoghue said. A decision is expected before February 6, when the panel of judges is reassembled.

Israel has repeatedly rejected the request for an immediate ceasefire, invoking its right to self-defence following the attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian extremists from Gaza on October 7.

Becker also described the massacres in which about 1,200 people were killed and about 250 kidnapped from Israel, around half of whom have been released so far.

"What Israel seeks is not to destroy a people but to protect a people, its people," Becker said.

"Hamas has systematically and unlawfully embedded its military infrastructure in ... schools, mosques, hospitals and other sensitive sites. This is a preplanned, abhorrent method of warfare," he said.

This is the first time that Israel has faced a genocide accusation before the ICJ.

On Thursday, the first day of hearings, South Africa put forward its contention that Israel is committing "systematic" acts of genocide in Gaza, citing examples of military violence and statements by Israeli politicians and military brass.

More than 23,000 Palestinians have been killed amid Israel's military campaign in the coastal strip, with at least 70% of them women and children, according to the Hamas-run health authority.

Israel has repeatedly dismissed South Africa's claims as baseless.

The fight against Hamas in the Gaza Strip is "in full compliance with international law," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday.

According to the UN Human Rights Office, Israel is violating basic principles of international humanitarian law in its military operations in Gaza and failing to take precautionary measures to protect the civilian population.

A spokeswoman for the UN office said on Friday in Geneva that violations of international humanitarian law increase the risk of being held accountable for war crimes.

The complaint at the world court particularly affects Israel because the country was founded in the wake of the Holocaust during which about 6 million Jews were murdered by Germany's Nazi regime.

The German government has clearly sided with Israel in the genocide proceedings concerning the Gaza war.

"We know that different countries have different assessments of Israel's operation in the Gaza Strip. However, the German government firmly and explicitly rejects the accusation of genocide now being made against Israel before the International Court of Justice," said government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit in Berlin on Friday.

"This accusation has no basis whatsoever."

Hebestreit said that the German government also intends to take a corresponding stance in court if a main trial is held.

"The [German government] intends to intervene as a third party in the main hearing," he added.

Berlin considers itself particularly committed to the Convention against Genocide due to its historical responsibility for the crimes against humanity committed by the Nazis, he said.

"This convention is a central instrument of international law to implement the 'never again' principle. We firmly oppose any political exploitation," Hebestreit said.

Both South Africa and Israel have signed the Genocide Convention, thereby committing themselves not only not to commit genocide, but also to prevent it.

South Africa cited quotes from Israeli ministers in favour of the eradication of the Gaza Strip as evidence.

This was rejected by Israel's legal representatives, who argued that those were not the views of the collective government.

Decisions of the UN court are binding, but it does not have the means to enforce them.

A decision could damage Israel's reputation, however, and further increase international pressure to end the fighting in Gaza.