SOUTH AFRICA’S ROAD GAME TO INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE: AN AGENDA FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54503/2953-8165-2025.4(1)-7Keywords:
International Court of Justice, Israel-Hamas war, Middle East crisis, pogromAbstract
This paper interrogates and reflects on South Africa’s journey to the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The objective was to seek justice for the besieged Gazans by Israel in the occupied territory. While the war in Gaza is an exothermic reaction by Israel to Hamas’s brutal attack on October 7, 2023, the conduct of the war on Gaza has been the indiscriminate bombings, disproportionate, and collective punishment of civilians in the overcrowded enclave. Despite all attempts by the international community (e.g., UNSC, EU) to halt the Gaza onslaught, Israel has thus paid no heed to calls for a humanitarian ceasefire to ameliorate the suffering masses in the Gaza Strip.
It is in the light of the inability of the UN to resolve the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza that prompted South Africa to turn to the International Court of Justice to deliver to world leaders its responsibility to prevent possible acts of genocide or crime against humanity. This study surveyed various documentary evidence and observations to justify the need for this study.
This paper argues that South Africa’s journey to the ICJ was primarily to halt the humanitarian crisis and also to bleach the conscience of world leaders on Israel’s war in Gaza. The paper concludes that South Africa’s court action was primarily to prevent a possible genocide and never intended to hurt the feelings of the Jewish state and her staunch allies.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Awaisu Imurana BRAIMAH, Lawrence QUARSHIE (Author)
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