South Africa Drags Israel to the ICJ

If approved, the ICJ could issue an order in weeks, similar to the order granted in Ukraine v Russia. The ICJ issued an emergency order against Moscow’s invasion in less than three weeks. The court, on March 16, 2022, ordered Russia to “immediately suspend the military operations”.

The ICJ is comprised of 15 judges appointed for nine-year terms. Elections are conducted separately and simultaneously at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the UN Security Council. No two judges must come from one country, although all countries are eligible to participate. The current bench includes judges from around the world, including Australia, India, Jamaica, and Uganda.

At the moment, the President of the ICJ is Joan E Donoghue of the United States. He is deputized by Vice President Kirill Gevorgian of Russia. Their terms in the ICJ expire in February.

Israel and South Africa were allowed to appoint one “ad hoc” judge each to join the bench as parties in the suit since neither is represented currently. Aharon Barak, a former Supreme Court chief justice and Holocaust survivor, was chosen by Israel. Dikgang Moseneke, a former deputy chief justice, leads South Africa’s team.

Israel selected British lawyer Malcolm Shaw to be on its legal team. South Africa’s team is led by John Dugard, a professor of international law.

Although the provisional hearing will be over in a few weeks, the main case, which will determine if Israel is indeed guilty of genocide, will take much longer. The court will give both parties adequate time to build their cases and submit robust arguments. This would involve multiple hearings. Then, the judges would vote, and a final decision would be announced.

ICJ judgments are legally binding and cannot be appealed, but they cannot be enforced by the court. If Israel does not comply, South Africa can approach the UN Security Council for enforcement. The US has veto power as a permanent member and can shield Israel from punishment, as it has done multiple times in the past. The US has vetoed nearly all UNSC draft resolutions related to the Israel-Palestine conflict since 1945).

South Africa compared the Israeli occupation to the apartheid. Veterans of the apartheid struggle and a large proportion of the politicians (ruling party and opposition) have expressed their support of the case before the ICJ.

However, many suspect South Africa’s true intentions for pursuing the case may not be altruistic.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s party has lost a lot of support from South Africans due to corruption within its ranks and a failure to address electricity shortages, poverty, and the rising cost of living.