In a complaint requesting an immediate halt to Israel’s military operation in Gaza, where it claims Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, a high court of the UN convened on Thursday to hear arguments.

Later this month, a decision on the emergency measures is anticipated. The court’s decision about the genocide accusations won’t be made until later; the proceedings may take several years.

Regarding the charges of genocide, which Israel and its main supporter, the United States, have denied, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa stated, “Our opposition to the ongoing slaughter of the people of Gaza has driven us as a country to approach the ICJ.”

Supporters of both sides of the case organized marches and protests in The Hague as a result of the politically sensitive case garnering international attention.

Early on Thursday morning, thousands of pro-Israel demonstrators marched through the city center in subfreezing weather. They carried posters with photographs of Hamas hostages as well as Israeli and Dutch flags.

The court cannot enforce its decisions, but they are final and cannot be challenged.

LIVE: South Africa begins its genocide case against Israel at the ICJ in The Hague. https://t.co/91IIgwSAgK

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) January 11, 2024

Israel, which is at war with Hamas in Gaza, has dismissed the charges of genocide as unfounded and charged Pretoria of acting as the “advocate of the devil” for the Palestinian resistance organization.

Speaking on social networking platform X, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated: “I want to make a few points absolutely clear: Israel has no intention of permanently occupying Gaza or displacing its civilian population.”

As signatories to the 1948 Genocide Convention, South Africa and Israel are obligated to refrain from genocide as well as to prevent and punish it.

The treaty defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group”.

The Al-Qassam Brigades distribute scenes showing a Zionist infantry force being lured into a tunnel and caught in an elaborate ambush in the Sheikh Radwan area at the end of last month. pic.twitter.com/lakFhMprJF

— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) January 10, 2024

A humanitarian disaster has resulted from the Israeli offensive, which has destroyed a large portion of the densely populated Gaza Strip and forced virtually all of its 2.3 million residents from their homes at least once.

Following apartheid Since Yasser Arafat’s Palestine Liberation Organization supported the African National Congress in its fight against white minority rule, South Africa has stood up for the Palestinian cause.

South Africa claims Israel’s inability to supply the Palestinian enclave with food, water, medication, and other necessities in its court submissions.

Additionally, it draws attention to the ongoing bombing campaign, which, according to Gaza’s health authorities, has claimed over 23,000 lives.

On Wednesday, Jordan and Egypt urged that the displaced people be given permission to return home and issued a warning against any Israeli reoccupation of the Gaza Strip.

Even while Israel promised to withdraw some forces and switch to a more focused campaign, Israeli strikes in Gaza grew increasingly intense.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the chief military spokesperson for Israel, stated during a briefing that the military is concentrating its efforts on Khan Younis and the refugee camps located in the middle of the Strip.

Hamas publishes footage of them clashing with zionists in Gaza pic.twitter.com/4a1Rmlpfg4

— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) January 10, 2024

The Houthi movement in Yemen, which is assisting Gaza, launched its largest attack to date against US and British warships in the Red Sea, in the most recent indication of the three-month-old conflict escalating.

21 drones and missiles intended at shipping channels were reported downed by Washington and London. Nobody was harmed.

A resolution requiring the Houthis to immediately stop their attacks on ships was approved by the UN Security Council.

Due to security concerns, the World Health Organization had to postpone its scheduled medical aid mission to Gaza—the sixth one in as many weeks.

Palestinian health officials said that four children were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a house in Rafah, while the Palestinian Red Crescent reported that four of its employees had been killed in an Israeli hit in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Palestinian officials, including President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, on his fourth visit to the area during the war.

According to the State Department, Blinken talked about efforts to safeguard and assist Gaza’s civilian population as well as his support for a Palestinian state. Abbas reportedly urged Blinken that no Palestinians should be forced to leave Gaza or the West Bank, according to the Palestinian Authority.

A US official stated that as part of US attempts to reduce tension along the Israel-Lebanon border, senior White House adviser Amos Hochstein is anticipated to visit Beirut on Thursday.

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