Muscat/ The Hague: The Sultanate of Oman has welcomed the International Court of Justice's ruling on Friday that Israel must prevent genocidal acts in Gaza and allow humanitarian aid into the territory.
In a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry, Oman stressed the importance of adherence to these rulings and the need to immediately stop all forms of Israeli aggression against Gaza Strip and the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories. It also underscored the need to lift the siege imposed on Gaza in a way that guarantees safe entry for all types of humanitarian needs.
In the statement, Oman called on the international community to oblige Israel — the occupying state — to halt the military operations and acts of genocide against the Palestinian people. Oman also expressed its deep appreciation to South Africa for its honourable stance in standing with human rights and justice and its adoption of filing this lawsuit before the court. The ICJ as not deciding whether Israel was actually committing genocide with its military campaign in Gaza — that process will likely take several years.
But it ruled that the "catastrophic humanitarian situation" in Gaza was "at serious risk of deteriorating further" before a final decision, so it issued a series of emergency measures. Israel must "take all measures in its power" to prevent genocidal acts and also stop officials making declarations inciting genocide, the court said.
Concretely, the court urged Israel to take "immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance". Speaking to reporters on the steps of the gilded Peace Palace in The Hague, where the court sits, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor said the measures were tantamount to a call for a ceasefire.
"How do you deliver humanitarian aid without a ceasefire? How do you provide water, access to energy? How do you ensure that those who are injured have healthcare and so on?" she said. "Without a ceasefire, not one of these things can be done." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the charge against Israel "is not only false, it's outrageous, and decent people everywhere should reject it".
Over two days of hearings earlier this month, lawyers from both sides battled it over the interpretation of this Convention. Although its rulings are legally binding, it has no mechanism to enforce them and they are sometimes completely ignored -- it has ordered Russia to stop its invasion of Ukraine for example. Netanyahu has already hinted that Israel would not abide by any ruling saying "no one will stop us", not even a verdict in The Hague.
But experts believe that aside from the significant symbolic impact of the ruling, there could be tangible consequences on the ground.
"It makes it much harder for other states to continue to support Israel in the face of a neutral third party finding there is a risk of genocide," said Juliette McIntyre, international law expert from the University of South Australia. "States may withdraw military or other support for Israel in order to avoid this," she said. — ONA and AFP
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