Netherlands – South Africa’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Vusimuzi Madonsela, called on all countries to testify in the case brought by his country before the International Court of Justice in order to punish Israel for the crime of “genocide.”
Madonsela began by explaining his country’s motives for filing this lawsuit against Israel. He said: “As a country that directly suffered from oppression and suffered under the apartheid regime, it was very important for us to contribute to preventing others from suffering due to a similar regime.”
He added: “We see that what Israel is committing in the occupied Palestinian territories is the worst version of what we lived under the apartheid regime.”
Accordingly, according to Madonsela, South Africa considered that filing this lawsuit against Israel in the International Court of Justice “is its duty towards its people and the international community” to “ensure that Israel is held accountable for its actions.”
He said that his country filed the lawsuit and has “sufficient evidence to prove that Israel committed the crime of genocide.”
In this regard, he referred to the actions of Israeli soldiers on the ground and segments of its population, in addition to the statements of its high-ranking political and military officials, which are consistent with the intention to eliminate the Palestinian people.
Regarding his country’s expectations for the outcome of the lawsuit and its next steps, the South African diplomat said: “At the end of this process, we expect the court to declare that Israel’s continued occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal and must end.”
He added: “After that, the matter will be referred to the (United Nations) General Assembly to move forward on how to implement the lifting of apartheid in the Palestinian territories, guided by court decisions.”
The ambassador invited the states parties to the “Convention on the Prevention of the Crime of Genocide” to attend the hearings at the International Court of Justice, and to present their views along with the evidence available to them, in order to “show the court that Israel committed the crime of genocide.”
He explained, “If the court reaches this conclusion, we wait for Israel to be punished appropriately.”
Ambassador Madonsela participated in a session of the International Court of Justice on February 20, during which his speech received wide attention.
In that speech, he said that about 30,000 Palestinians were killed during the last 4 months, and that “these are not just statistics, but rather the blood and body parts of the Palestinian people.”
He denounced: “When will the decades of impunity that Israel has experienced end?”
He continued: “Over the past 140 days, the world has watched in horror the continuing attacks on Gaza, day after day.”
He stressed that “the brutality and violence of the recent Israeli military operation against Gaza and the violation of international law, including orders issued by the International Court of Justice, are the clearest indication that Israel considers itself unrestrained in its actions against the Palestinians.”
On February 19, hearings began at the International Court of Justice that will continue until February 26, with the participation of more than 50 countries to present arguments regarding Israeli practices in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Among those countries are Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Egypt, the Emirates, and Jordan, in addition to the United States, Britain, Canada, Russia, and China, according to the court’s website.
Anatolia
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2024-05-29 09:17:38