Ireland joins South Africa's ICJ genocide case against Israel

Ireland filed a declaration of intervention Monday in support of South Africa’s genocide case against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The decision comes after Ireland’s November Parliament motion and December Cabinet vote affirmed its stance that “genocide is being perpetrated before our eyes by Israel in Gaza.”

Ireland’s intervention is based on the 77-year-old Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide adopted by the United Nations in 1948.

South Africa accused Israel of “killing Palestinians in Gaza, causing them serious bodily and mental harm, and inflicting on them conditions of life calculated to bring about their physical destruction.”

Ireland echoed those concerns, alleging that Israel is in violation of Articles I, II, III, IV, V and VI of the Convention and arguing that the war on Hamas has spawned a deadly impact on the Palestinian ethnic group.

“It is evident from the drafting history of the Convention that the term intent is not limited to the purpose of the perpetrator, but can also comprehend knowledge of the foreseeable consequence of the act committed,” the government of Ireland asserted in the legal filing.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the case “meritless” following South Africa’s original genocide claims that were first filed in December 2023. The United States has continued to support Israel’s efforts to recover hostages in the fight against Hamas.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long denied claims of genocide and signaled an effort to cut ties with Ireland last month by closing its embassy in the European nation after it recognized Palestine as a state, which it declared antisemitic.

“The actions and antisemitic rhetoric used by Ireland against Israel are rooted in the delegitimization and demonization of the Jewish state, along with double standards. Ireland has crossed every red line in its relations with Israel,” Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said in a statement.

Topics

Peter Hain urges South Africa to protest Afghanistan game at Champions Trophy

Anti-apartheid campaigner plea to governing body Women’s cricket team disbanded under Taliban rule The veteran anti-apartheid campaigner Peter Hain has called on Cricket South Africa to ...
The Guardian - 4h
Vaughan to captain England U19s in South Africa

Somerset all-rounder Archie Vaughan, son of former England captain Michael, will captain England U19s on their tour of South Africa later this month.
BBC News - 5h
Ireland Joins South Africa’s Genocide Case Against Israel

Ireland had said it would intervene in the case at the International Court of Justice, arguing that Israel’s actions in Gaza amounted to collective punishment.
The New York Times - 19h
Thandiswa Mazwai Is the Voice of South Africa’s First Post-Apartheid Generation

Thandiswa Mazwai has sung of South Africa’s highs and lows since the country became a multiracial democracy 30 years ago. “My calling is to sing the people’s joy, to sing the people’s sadness.”
The New York Times - 1d
ArcelorMittal's South Africa Business to Wind Down Long-Steel Production

Around 3,500 jobs will be affected after weak economic conditions, high costs and Chinese steel imports weighed on the company.
The Wall Street Journal - 2d
FBI says it foiled possible attack against pro-Israel group Aipac

Man accused of traveling to offices in Florida with intention of ‘killing, injuring, harassing and intimidating’. FBI agents say they have foiled a possible attack on a US pro-Israel group ...
The Guardian - 6d
FBI disrupts alleged plot against pro-Israel U.S. group

Authorities said the Florida man arrested in the alleged plot had three firearms, including an AR-style rifle, with him when law enforcement stopped the vehicle he was in.
CBS News - Jan. 1
Experts from U.S. join South Korea plane crash probe

Experts from the National Transportation Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing joined the probe into the South Korea plane crash that killed all but two of the 181 people on ...
CBS News - Dec. 31

More from The Hill

Watters tells Ontario premier it would be a 'privilege to be taken over' by US

Fox News host Jesse Watters told a Canadian government official this week he would be honored to be "taken over" by the United States if he were a Canadian citizen. “You say that Americans don’t ...
The Hill - 27m
Meta changes hate speech rules, dropping LGBTQ protections

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, dropped some LGBTQ protections from its hate speech rules Tuesday amid a wider overhaul of the social media giant’s content moderation ...
The Hill - 30m
Stephen A. Smith: Americans 'relate' to Trump's view on Canada

Sports media personality Stephen A. Smith says Americans feel a connection with President-elect Trump's rhetoric on Canada and Greenland. "This kind of language, no matter how frivolous we may ...
The Hill - 38m
Doing the math on Russia’s territorial gains in Ukraine

Yes, Russia is making incremental advances, but no, those gains don’t amount to a blitzkrieg.
The Hill - 42m
Live updates: Trump heads to Capitol Hill after asking Supreme Court to stop NY sentencing

President-elect Trump kicked off Wednesday morning by asking the Supreme Court to halt the scheduled Friday sentencing in his New York hush money case until his appeals in the case are resolved. ...
The Hill - 45m