s atrocities against Palestinians continue, the international community, especially the Global South, has watched with increasing discomfort. Now the Republic of South Africa has taken the matter to the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

There can be no justification for killing unarmed men, women and children. The Israeli army has nuclear warheads and its trigger-happy soldiers are armed with tanks, aircraft, gunship helicopters, warships and phosphorous bombs. Mild condemnation, criticism and humanitarian aid are the most the world has been able to do so far. The United States and its allies have not done even that, claiming that Israel is acting in self-defence.

In this gloomy situation, South Africa has shown great courage in holding a mirror to Israel and filing a genocide complaint against it. The case was filed on December 29. Israel has been accused in the complaint of committing genocide in contravention of the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention, which both South Africa and Israel are party to. Countries party to the treaty have a right each and a collective responsibility to prevent and stop the crime.

According to the convention, “genocide is a crime that can take place both in time of war and in time of peace.” The definition contained in Article II of the convention describes genocide as “a crime committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, in whole or in part.” What South Africa wants is an immediate ruling asking Israel to halt its military campaign in Gaza. If the South African request is approved, the ICJ can issue an order within weeks. In the case of Ukraine-Russia war, the ICJ had responded to Kyiv’s requests for an emergency order against Moscow’s invasion in less than three weeks. On March 16, 2022, the court had ordered Russia to “immediately suspend the military operations.” Under ICJ rules, countries can request that interim measures be put in place before the case proper starts if one party believes that the violations that formed the basis of its application are still continuing, as is the case in Gaza. The final verdict could take several years.

It is not the first time that Israel has acted in Palestine arbitrarily and with impunity. In earlier strikes and campaigns in 2008, 2012, 2014 and 2021, too, no one had stopped Israel. The precedent that Israel can commit war crimes and crimes against humanity without any sanction or condemnation from the international community is what has emboldened Israel to nearly exterminate Palestinians in Gaza.

Israel has vehemently denied the allegations.

Hitherto, the ICJ has heard cases under the Genocide Convention 1948, brought by Croatia against Serbia; Bosnia and Herzegovina against Yugoslavia (Serbia and Montenegro); and Ukraine against Russia. Although the court’s findings are considered binding, whether Israel will heed an order to halt the military operations is unclear. Israel has frequently boycotted international tribunals and UN investigations, calling them unfair and biased. In theory if it doesn’t abide by an ICJ ruling, it can face UN sanctions. However, those may be blocked by a US veto.

Israel launched its massive air and ground assault on Gaza soon after a deadly Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. The offensive has driven nearly 85 percent of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million from their homes. With only limited amount of food, water and medicine getting past an Israeli siege, a quarter of the territory’s residents face starvation and much of northern Gaza, including Gaza City, has been reduced to rubble. Israeli leaders blame Hamas for the high death toll, asserting that despite the fact that their enemy operates in residential areas, they are following international law and doing their utmost to avoid harm to the civilians.

When Nelson Mandela was elected president in 1994, he thanked the international community for its help and added: “But we know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.”

The issue of genocide in Gaza is important to South Africa’s ruling party, the African National Congress, which has long compared Israel’s policies in Gaza and the West Bank to South Africa’s history under the apartheid regime of white minority rule. Nelson Mandela, who steered the country out of apartheid rule, had always supported the Palestinian cause. After his demise, the tradition has continued among his successors. When Mr Mandela was released from prison in 1990, he had flown to Zambia to meet with African leaders who had supported his fight against South Africa’s apartheid system. There he had also met Yasser Arafat, the revered Palestinian leader and chairman of Palestine Liberation Organisation, who had travelled to see the newly freed Mandela. This was an endorsement of the solidarity between two men who considered their peoples’ struggles for freedom to be similar. Mr Mandela regularly raised a voice to highlight the plight of the Palestinians. When Mandela was elected president in 1994, he thanked the international community for its support and added: “But we know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.” Now, his grandson Mandla Mandela is continuing with his legacy by spearheading protests and rallies in favour of the Palestinians.

Israel’s assault on Gaza has sparked renewed solidarity with the Palestinian cause in South Africa. Thousands have marched in support of Gaza in Cape Town and Johannesburg and pro-Palestinian graffiti has appeared on many walls in the weeks following Israeli aggression. Over the years, anti-Israeli rhetoric in South Africa has strengthened sometimes seeping into everyday life. For example, the ANC’s youth wing has pressured South African grocery store chains to drop Israeli products and threatened to forcibly shut them down if they don’t comply. In December 2023, three Hamas officials attended a ceremony in South Africa marking the 10th anniversary of Nelson Mandela’s death.

This case of genocide brought before the ICJ is unique in one sense. While all previous cases have been brought to the ICJ by the aggrieved parties, the case for the Palestinians has been lodged by South Africa which is not a party to the conflict. This speaks of the importance South Africa accords to humanity, morality and international laws.

In a highly polarised world where many countries have chosen silence in view of their political and economic interests, South Africa has emerged as a beacon of hope. The core issue here is not a particular race but the principle that crimes against humanity need to be condemned and stopped. South Africa has done the right thing.

The issue of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, where Kashmiris are under Indian subjugation for the last 75 years, bears similarity to the Palestinian situation. If Israel is not called out for genocide, this might send a wrong signal to other oppressors in the world. South Africa is holding a mirror to the Israeli atrocities and calling others to join in its campaign to save the humanity.

There is a need to realise that owing to the spread of modern technologies, no nation on earth enjoys complete impunity from oppression - physical or digital. If Palestinians continue to be tormented today, others will not be immune from the oppression for long. All nations, therefore, need to unite to find ways and means for ending tyranny around the globe in their own interest. The world must join hands with South Africa in stopping Israeli aggression against the Palestinians.

The writer is a communication strategist at the Institute of Regional Studies, Islamabad. She can be reached at reema.asim81@gmail.com