The coherent and incoherent ICJ verdict on genocide in Gaza

A makeshift cemetary where Palestinians killed in Israeli bombing are buried in shallow tombs in Gaza City's Al-Sahaba Street. Israeli troops reportedly ransacked graves and exhumed bodies in January. — AFP

REGARDLESS of what one might say, the ruling at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Israel's military operation in Gaza is undoubtedly important in a symbolic sense: It found that the Palestinians of Gaza are a protected group under the provisions of the Genocide Convention 1949. Moreover, South Africa had proven that there is a reasonable basis to litigate whether Israel’s military onslaught constitutes a genocide.

As expected, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in keeping with his promise to reject any ruling that the Court may make, continued his tirade by lambasting the interim verdict. He even felt “exonerated” because the Court did not call for a total ceasefire, hence giving the Israelis the green light to continue their genocidal campaign against the trapped population of Gaza.