South Africa files 'evidence' of Israel's Gaza 'genocide' with ICJ

South Africa has filed "evidence of a genocide" committed by Israel in Gaza with the International Court of Justice, the office of President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement.

The document "contains evidence which shows how the government of Israel has violated the genocide convention by promoting the destruction of Palestinians living in Gaza", the presidency said on Monday.

It added that the filing included additional facts, evidence and arguments in South Africa's ongoing genocide case against Israel.

The evidence shows Israel's actions are aimed at the physical destruction of Palestinians as well as "ignoring and defying" several provisional measures ordered earlier by the UN's top court.

Israel is "using starvation as a weapon of war and to further Israel's aims to depopulate Gaza through mass death and forced displacement of Palestinians", the presidency said, referring to the evidence detailed in over 750 pages of text, supported by exhibits and annexes of over 4,000 pages.

New evidence

The cache of new evidence may not be made public, it added.

The filing of the evidence comes just as Israel is intensifying the killing of civilians in Gaza and "now seems intent to follow a similar path of destruction in Lebanon", the statement said.

The respondent, Israel, is due to file a response to the new evidence by July 28 of next year.

South Africa filed the genocide case against Israel at The Hague-based tribunal in late 2023, accusing Israel, which has relentlessly bombed Gaza since last October, of failing to uphold its commitments under the 1948 Genocide Convention.

Several countries, including Türkiye, Nicaragua, Palestine, Spain, Mexico, Libya and Colombia, have joined the case at the ICJ, which began public hearings in January.