South Africa officially submitted a 5,000-page document providing evidence of Israel's ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza to the International Court of Justice on Monday.
The document, which the ICJ will not make public until a later stage in the proceedings, puts forth the "main case” that Israel has a "special intent to commit genocide,” according to a statement from South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa.
On Monday a court official at the ICJ confirmed that they had received the document.
The filing takes place as the Israeli military has called on Palestinians to evacuate northern Gaza, where it has been waging deadly attacks for more than three weeks. The U.N. said earlier this month at least 400,000 people are still in northern Gaza and hunger is rampant as the amount of humanitarian aid reaching the north has plummeted over the past month.
The Hague-based court has so far issued three rounds of emergency measures, ordering Israel to halt its attacks in Rafah and open more land crossings for aid into Gaza.
South Africa says Israel has refused to comply. "Israel’s continued shredding of international law has imperiled the institutions of global governance that were established to hold all states accountable,” the president’s statement said.
Palestine, Türkiye, Spain, Chile and seven other countries have petitioned the court to join the case.
Israel now has until July 2025 to reply.
