The top United Nations court stopped short Friday, January 26, of ordering a cease-fire in Gaza but demanded that Israel try to contain death and damage in its military offensive in the tiny coastal enclave. South Africa, which brought the case, had asked for the court to order Israel to halt its operation. In the highly anticipated decision made by a panel of 17 judges, the International Court of Justice decided not to throw out the case.
Israel must take also "immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians," ruled the court in its highly anticipated verdict.
Friday's decision is only an interim one; it could take years for the full case brought by South Africa to be considered. Israel rejects the genocide accusation and had asked the court to throw the charges out.
While the case winds its way through the court, South Africa had asked the judges "as a matter of extreme urgency" to impose so-called provisional measures to protect Palestinians in Gaza. Top of the South African list is a request for the court to order Israel to "immediately suspend its military operations in and against Gaza." It als asked for Israel to take "reasonable measures" to prevent genocide and allow access for desperately needed aid.
In a statement Thursday, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh said he hoped the decision would "include immediate action to stop the aggression and genocide against our people in the Gaza Strip ... and a rapid flow of relief aid to save the hungry, wounded and sick from the threat of slow death that threatens them."
On Thursday, Israeli government spokesperson Eylon Levy had said that Israel expected the court to toss out the "spurious and specious charges." Israel often boycotts international tribunals and UN investigations, saying they are unfair and biased. But this time, it took the rare step of sending a high-level legal team – a sign of how seriously it regards the case and likely the fear that any court order to halt operations would be a major blow to the country’s international standing.
An Israeli official said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu huddled with top legal, diplomatic and security officials on Thursday in anticipation of the ruling. He said Israel is confident in its case but discussed "all scenarios." The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing confidential meetings.
Israel launched its massive air and ground assault on Gaza after Hamas militants stormed through Israeli communities on Oct. 7 killing some 1,200 people, mainly civilians, and abducting another 250. The offensive has decimated vast swaths of the territory and driven nearly 85% of its 2.3 million people from their homes. More than 26,000 Palestinians have been killed, the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run enclave said on Friday. The ministry does not differentiate between combatants and civilians in its death toll, but has said about two-thirds of those killed were women and children.