‘Shameless’: Israelis heap scorn on The Hague’s Rafah ruling
Israelis heaped scorn on the International Court of Justice for apparently ruling on Friday that Israel must scale back or end its military operations in Rafah.
Asher Guedalia. Photo by Kobi Natan/TPS-IL
“We’re getting more aid into Gaza than there was before the war,” Asher Guedalia told The Press Service of Israel.
“More trucks are coming in, prices are dropping when the IDF gets to an area. That aid is because Hamas can’t restrict it anymore. And still, with all this, the [ICJ] says that we are doing these war crimes. [However], there are no facts, there’s nothing, there’s only lies. And anyone who knows anything can see it.”
Beora Margolis told TPS-IL, “They’re telling us that we’re harming the Palestinians, killing their children, hurting them and that they don’t have a home because of that. But it’s not us. It’s not us. It’s the Hamas. You see the trucks going into Gaza, who’s stealing all the food?”
Her 37-year-old brother, Saar Margolis, was a member of Kibbutz Kissufim’s civilian security team killed during Hamas’s October 7 attack.
One Israeli man called the ruling “impudent” and “shameless.”
“I think it’s impudent to come and accuse Israel of genocide. [Hamas] slaughtered babies, burned babies, tied up an entire family, poured fuel on them and burned them. And you’re going to blame Israel? Israel is defending itself. You blame Israel for genocide? It’s shameless,” he said.
Rabbi Yehoshua Shani, whose son Uri, was killed defending the area of Kibbutz Kissufim, told TPS-IL the ruling showed the court is politicized.
“It’s ridiculous. It’s just showing that this [ICJ] is not really serious. It’s an organization that’s more about politics than looking for justice. Our expectation is that most of the world will not take the [ICJ] seriously.”
However, the ambiguous wording of Friday’s ruling leaves room for Israel to continue its activities in Rafah, according to several ICJ judges.
Israel rejects the ICJ’s jurisdiction to hear South Africa’s petition.
In a provisional ruling issued on January 26, the ICJ ordered Israel by a vote of 15-2 to “take all measures” to prevent “genocide” in Gaza but did not order the implementation of a ceasefire.
Israel accused South Africa of “distorting the truth,” “abusing court procedures,” and seeking to assist Hamas for political reasons. The Israeli delegation also argued that South Africa is trying to get the ICJ to “micromanage” the war, which is beyond the court’s mandate.
An ICJ injunction could be enforced by the UN Security Council.
Meanwhile, Israeli leaders are bracing for the possibility that the International Criminal Court, a separate court also based in The Hague, will approve Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan’s request to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, along with Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Ismail Haniyeh and Mohammed Deif.
Israel is not a party of the ICC.
A three-judge panel will rule on Khan’s request, but it isn’t clear when.
At least 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 125 remaining hostages, 39 are believed dead.
