Starvation in Gaza: The World Court’s Latest Intervention
Rarely has the International Court of Justice been so constantly exercised by one topic during a short span of time. On January 26, the World Court, considering a filing made the previous December by South Africa, accepted Pretoria’s argument that the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide was applicable to the conflict in so far as Israel was bound to observe it in its military operations against Hamas in Gaza. (The judges will determine, in due course, whether Israel’s actions in Gaza meet the genocidal threshold.) By 15-2, the judges noted that “the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is at serious risk of deteriorating further before the Court renders its final judgment.”
At that point 26,000 Palestinians had perished, much of Gaza pummelled into oblivion, and 85% of its 2.3 million residents expelled from their homes. Measures were therefore required to prevent “real and imminent risk that irreparable prejudice will be caused to the rights found by the Court to be plausible, before it gives its final decision.”
Israel was duly ordered to take all possible measures to prevent the commission of acts under Article II of the Genocide Convention; prevent and punish “the direct and public incitement to genocide” against the Gaza populace; permit basic services and humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip; ensure the preservation of, and prevent destruction of, evidence related to acts committed against Gaza’s Palestinians within Articles II and III of the Convention; and report to the ICJ on how Israel was abiding by such provisional measures within a month. The balance sheet on that score has been uneven at best.
Since then, the slaughter has continued, with the Palestinian death toll now standing at 32,300. The Israelis have refused to open more land crossings into Gaza, and continue to hamper aid going into the strip, even as they accuse aid agencies and providers of being tardy and dishonest. Their surly defiance of the United States has seen air drops of uneven, negligible success (the use of air to deliver aid has always been a perilous exercise). When executed, these have even been lethal to the unsuspecting recipients, with reported cases of parachutes failing to open.
On March 25, the UN Security Council, after three previous failed attempts, passed Resolution 2728, thereby calling for an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan “leading to a lasting sustainable” halt to hostilities, the “immediate and unconditional release of all hostages”, “ensuring humanitarian access to address their medical and other humanitarian needs” and “demands that the parties comply with their obligations under international law in relation to all persons they detain.”
Emphasis was also placed on “the urgent need to expand the flow of humanitarian assistance to and reinforce the protection of civilians in the entire Gaza Strip.” The resolution further demands that all barriers regarding the provision of humanitarian assistance, in accordance with international humanitarian law be lifted.
Since January, South Africa has been relentless in its efforts to curb Israel’s Gaza enterprise in The Hague. It called upon the ICJ on February 14, referring to “the developing circumstances in Rafah”, to urgently exercise powers under Article 75 of the Rules of Court. Israel responded on February 15. The next day, the ICJ’s Registrar transmitted to the parties the view of the Court that the “perilous situation” in the Gaza Strip, but notably in Rafah, “demands immediate and effective implementation of the provisional measures indicated by the Court in its Order of 26 January 2024.”
Throughout the following month, more legal jostling and communication took place, with Pretoria requesting on March 6 that the ICJ “indicate further provisional measures and/or to modify” those ordered on January 26. The application was prompted by the “horrific deaths from starvation of Palestinian children, including babies, brought about by Israel’s deliberate acts and omissions … including Israel’s concerted attempts since 26 January 2024 to ensure the defunding of [the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and Israel’s attacks on starving Palestinians seeking to access what extremely limited humanitarian assistance Israel permits into Northern Gaza, in particular.”
Israel responded on March 15 to the South African communication, rejecting the claims of starvation arising from deliberate acts and omissions “in the strongest terms.” The logic of the sketchy rebuttal from Israel was that matters had not materially altered since January 26 to warrant a reconsideration: “the difficult and tragic situation in the Gaza Strip in the last weeks could not be said to materially change the considerations upon which the Court based its original decision concerning provisional measures.”
On March 28, the Court issued a unanimous order modifying the January interim order. Combing through the ghoulish evidence, the judges noted an updated report from March 18 on food insecurity from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification Global Initiative (IPC Global Initiative) stating that “conditions necessary to prevent Famine have not been met and the latest evidence confirms that Famine is imminent in the northern governorates and projected to occur anytime between mid-March and May 2024.” The UN Children’s Fund had also reported that 31 per cent of children under 2 years of age in the northern Gaza Strip were enduring conditions of “acute malnutrition”.
In the face of this Himalaya of devastation, the Court could only observe “that Palestinians in Gaza are no longer facing a risk of famine, as noted in the Order of 26 January 2024, but that famine is setting in, with at least 31 people, including 27 children, having already died of malnutrition and dehydration.” There were “unprecedented levels of food insecurity experienced by Palestinians in the Gaza strip over recent weeks, as well as the increasing risks of epidemics.”
Such “grave” conditions granted the Court jurisdiction to modify the January 26 order which no longer fully addressed “the consequences arising from the changes in the situation.” In view of the “worsening conditions of life faced by Palestinians in Gaza, in particular the spread of famine and starvation”, Israel should take “all necessary and effective measures to ensure, without delay, in full cooperation with the United Nations, the unhindered provision at scale by all concerned of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance.”
The list of what is needed is also enumerated: food, water, electricity, fuel, shelter, clothing, hygiene, sanitation requirements, and “medical supplies and medical care to Palestinians throughout Gaza, including by increasing the capacity and number of land crossing points and maintaining them open for as long as necessary.”
A less reported aspect of the March 28 order, passed by fifteen votes to one, was that Israel’s military refrain from committing “acts which constitute a violation of any rights of the Palestinians in Gaza as a protected group” under the Genocide Convention “including by preventing, through any action, the delivery of urgently needed humanitarian assistance.”
In this, the Court points to the possible, and increasingly plausible nexus, between starvation, famine and deprivation of necessaries as state policies with the intent to injure and kill members of a protected group. It is no doubt something that will weigh heavily on the minds of the judges as they continue mulling over the nature of the war in Gaza, which South Africa continues to insist is genocidal in scope and nature.
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14 comments
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Lyndal
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Terence Mills
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Phil Pryor
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Anne Byam
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K
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Terence Mills
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Tony
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Tony
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GL
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Terence Mills
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ajogrady
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Douglas Pritchard
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Clakka
Return to home pageIsrael seems to be the perfect example of how a people who suffer and are bullied and mistreated, develop into people without kindness or empathy, and become bullies and abusers themselves. Whether nations, groups or individuals, they all seem to be competing to enact the harshest treatment and most intolerable cruelties they can get away with. Israel has been allowed to translate the historic suffering of the Jews into ethnic cleansing of those it considers inconvenient minorities
In days leading up to Easter the US authorised the transfer of billions of dollars worth of bombs and fighter jets to Israel, even as Washington publicly expresses concerns about an anticipated Israeli military offensive in Rafah.
“The new arms packages include more than 1800 MK84 2000-pound (900 kilogram) bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound (226 kilogram) bombs, said the sources, who confirmed a report in the Washington Post.”
Evidently starvation isn’t doing the job quickly enough !
The murdering, slaughtering, thieving, crushing, supremacist, triumphal, racist, intrusive, occupationist, ultra-imperialist line of action since the 1880’s has seen an Israel arise instead of an honest Palestine, as promised by the British if they had honestly fulfilled the implications and intent of the League of Nations charter.., but, the British never did, for they had taken the image of winning a war by any means, and jewish money was offered, and Palestinians were down with the simians, unknown, unimportant, expendable, sacrificial, in good imperialist tradition. Since May, 1948, there should be a Palestine, and with what components it had then and developed subsequently, Arabic, other islamists, Jews, some christians, sensible non-superstitonists, whatever. But Zionsm is murder in strategy, to get, keep, steal. They want to eliminate Palestinians, but risk a total elimination of Israel if laws of filthy racist, supremacist, all or nothing, win it all or lose it all perverted history unfolds. What a terminal stupidity would that be.
Dr. Kampmark ~
I read most of your articles and appreciate the thorough research done, and your well written comments. I rarely reply to articles, but do so this time.
Any open minded person, with intelligence, can read the admonishments of the IJC as they are meant to be read and understood. There is however, nothing remotely like open-mindedness in Netanyahu and his cohorts. It does not suit their relentless pursuit of the riddance, not only of Hamas ( which is probably impossible ) but of any Palestinian person, who in their feeble war-mongering minds no doubt represent the possible future of Hamas. ‘So, let’s get rid of all of them, any which way doesn’t matter.’ It does not matter to the vile Zionist creatures that continue undaunted on a genocidal mission. That rotten mob know exactly what they are doing and also know they can get away with it – as aside from some other country becoming involved, there is no effective stop that can be put on them. Except of course, if the U.S. ( who are as hungry as ever for money, profit, strategic positioning and posturing ) would put a total STOP to supplying arms / military aid to the Zion monsters. But they won’t stop it – it is not in their best future interests to do so. Anywhere there is a big source of oil like there is in Palestine, is a big drawcard for the U.S. even though they have more than enough of their own recoverable oil. So they will continue to arm Israel with perhaps the thought that the oil rich areas there, once taken over by Israel, will further the U.S. interests. It would however, probably not be too wise for the U.S. to trust Israel – – – with anything.
Israel has been ‘duly ordered’ to take many measures to obey the ICJ recommendations, however, the way they could play that down for their own genocidal endeavours would be horrendous to contemplate. They are a rogue state with no boundaries except those boundaries that they keep closed against aid to the Palestinian people, to advance their evil tendencies.
Anne Byam, let’s not tarnish all Israelis with Netanyahu’s brush…. Other than through diplomatic channels, the ICJ has little recourse in enforcing any rulings. The Middle East has been torn apart for decades ( longer, if the books are true), by western powers intent on imposing their values on the “natives”. Colonialism is dead (just ask King Charles) but the mindset of imperialism persists. I don’t by any stretch condone what is happening there, but this “us” and “them” mentality is getting old, don’t you think? Combined with the lack of impartial media coverage, not just in Gaza. There’s always an angle…
K
I agree that media coverage is a problem and we rely heavily on an impartial media to keep us informed. The problem is that Israel will not allow journalists into Gaza and those that have been reporting there have been killed. Reporters Sans Frontières reports that 103 journalists have been killed by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) in five months of war in Gaza.
I found it chilling to hear a BBC vox pop in Jerusalem where a BBC journalist was asking opinions of passers by on the devastation and suffering occurring in Gaza. One women snapped back let them starve : she could have been a commentator in Berlin on the holocaust in wartime Germany in 1939.
And let’s not forget that there is still no clear evidence that the October 7 atrocities were authorised or coordinated by the Hamas ruling authorities in Gaza. More likely it was a radical terrorist splinter group as surely Hamas had nothing to gain from this.
What’s rarely mentioned is the influence of Zionists in the USA. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee alone has channeled some $100M to the Biden Admin and Biden himself has been given some $5.7M by pro-Israel lobbyists. And that’s just the public monies disclosed. Crapitol Hill is captured by vested interests. I don’t know what percent of Jews are Zionists but while that anti-human group is in control of policy I don’t see much change in the winds. It’d help if our legacy media was at least half honest in reporting.
Forgot to mention Wikipedia has a page of AIPAC.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIPAC
How does the average American tolerate it?
Sure they will all the while supplying Netanyahu and his nationalist maniacs with untold millions of dollars of weapons with which to keep killing the same people they’re professing to help. Bluntly: pack of bastards!
https://www.smh.com.au/national/how-the-us-will-walk-on-water-to-bring-aid-to-starving-gaza-20240326-p5ffgp.html
Pingback: Starvation in Gaza: The World Court’s Latest Intervention – Equilibrion
Gradually international law is recognising that any sale or transfer of weapons or ammunition to Israel that would or could be used in Gaza is likely to violate international humanitarian law and must cease immediately : https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2024/02/arms-exports-israel-must-stop-immediately-un-experts
Questions are being asked in the UK and German parliaments about these arms exports : the US are finding it a difficult to come to terms with their role in the continued genocide.
Lest we forget that the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.
The ongoing genocide in Gaza proves that evil has triumphed and there are no good men or women amongst world leaders.
Aaron Bushnell made the ultimate sacrifice outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C.. Aaron was a 25-year-old active US Air Force member with a strong sense of common decency. Aaron Bushnell understood the power and importance of common decency to the common people. Aaron Bushnell made a stand not only for Palestinians but a stand for the common people and common decency. When the common people support Palestinians they know that not only are they supporting Palestinians but they are supporting the principals of common decency and what that stands for. The common people recognize that common decency is the fundamental glue and fabric that is the basic tenets that hold humans lives together in a peaceful and harmonious community. The common peoples pursuit of common decency is their inalienable right to the interconnectedness of social habits and accepted rules of a civilised society. The common people understand that the trashing of rules and laws by Zionist Israel is trashing the common thread that their principles, values and standards are based on. The common people know without common decency, morality and integrity there are no principles, values and standards that trusted rules and laws can be based on. Shamefully a society devoid of these principles will allow anarchy to prevail. World leaders complicit silence and lack of tangible action is trashing civilised society norms as the common people have come to know it. Zionists trashing of international law and intrrnational rules based order will leave a vacuum
that will collapse law and order throughout civilised societies. Anarchy and the collapse of societal norms and safeguards will be the consequence of weak world leaders pathetic pandering to Zionism. Zionists and their complicit enablers have trashed and made a mockery of the fundamental foundations of a civilised society being reciprocity, commonwealth, participatory, justice, common good, association, sovereignty, equity, and accountability
Zionist enablers duplicitous double standards and blatant hypocrisy will never be forgotten. For them the end is nye!
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/26/us-airman-sets-self-on-fire-in-protest-over-israels-genocide-in-gaza
Is it significant that both Ukraine, and Israel, who are both sponsored by USA, have leaders who are preventing their population from holding an election for their leader?
Democracies are becoming increasingly hard to find.
Praise be to the US arms industry, and the election of the next crazy in “the land of the free”.
As horrendous, barbaric and brutal the Hamas / Israel situation has developed into since 7 Oct, the reality is Israel has been orchestrating such situations for many decades, in conjunction with the UK and / or USA.
In the greater scheme of dominion over the Levant / Fertile Crescent (forever, but latterly for oil), the Jews / Holy Land is a convenient leverage, and Palestinians irrelevant, but again a convenience to institute trouble-making and antagonism.
The Sykes-Rico agreement makes clear the objectives. But of course, following that, the guile of France and UK against Russia’s share set in motion the Crimean War, and from then on the greater alienation of Russia / USSR.
It should not be forgotten that the bolsheviks used the mighty Iranians to subvert those of the Caucuses, and the Turkmen, the Tajiks, the Kyrgyz, the Uzbeks and the Kazakhs, to facilitate Russia obtaining a stranglehold of control. Then of course, what would follow was Stalin’s maniacal deadly exploitations and deprivations.
With the USA joining the allies, and later being the ‘western’ strongman of the Cold War and self appointed ‘world’s policeman’, it may be naive to think that these matters would be forgotten and become irrelevant. The ever-burning issues and opportunities from Kazakhstan in the north, through to Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and the western Arabian peninsula to Palestine / Israel have been burbling away, ebbing and flowing increasingly over the last 150 years.
And the recent burgeoning wealth of various Arab states casts a different light the politics of the region.
With western Europe focused on Putin Russia’s preoccupation on war and incursion into Ukraine, it is not beyond reckoning that Israel’s clean-out of Palestine and breaches into the chaos of Syria and Lebanon represent a provocative pincer movement pivoting on Iran and heading northward.
It is notable that ISIS-K based in Afghanistan have leveraged the Tajiks to reek revenge on Russia via its Concert Hall attack.
The whole caboodle is becoming more volatile. And with all the machinations over contemporary history, the alliances and policies of the multitudes involved present a labile and dangerous situation.
For us outside of the circles of espionage, diplomacy and the military it will be almost impossible to establish a clear perspective. Quite likely, they can’t either.
A deadly tangled web, as usual.