South Africa drags Israel to ICJ over military operations in Rafah

South Africa has submitted an urgent request to the International Court of Justice to consider whether Israel’s plan to extend its offensive in Gaza into the city of Rafah requires additional emergency measures to protect Palestinians’ rights.

In a statement on Tuesday, the South African presidency announced it had submitted an “urgent request” to the International Court of Justice on Monday, stressing that Pretoria is “gravely concerned that the unprecedented military offensive against Rafah, as announced by the State of Israel, has already led to and will result in further large scale killing, harm, and destruction.

It added that the operation “would be in serious and irreparable breach both of the Genocide Convention and of the Court’s Order of Jan. 26.”

The UN Court confirmed in a post on X that it had received the request but gave no indication when it would make a decision.

Recall that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in January ordered Israel to take all measures within its means to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa.

Israel has disclosed plans to expand its offensives to Rafah, where 1 million Palestinians have sought safety after leaving the Gaza Strip, much of which has been damaged by Israeli military operations since October 7.

While reacting to Israel’s latest military operations, the head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini, said the situation in Rafah is “deeply concerning”.