The Irish government has approved a proposal to intervene in South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, national broadcaster RTE reported on Wednesday.
Micheál Martin, the deputy premier and minister for defense and foreign affairs, wanted to join Pretoria’s case to demonstrate Dublin’s “strong commitment to the rule of law and international justice.”
By filing a declaration of intervention, Ireland is officially not picking a side in the suit, which accuses Jerusalem of breaches of the Genocide Convention over its war against Hamas terrorists. However, in practice, intervening parties always seek to support one of the sides in a dispute.
Speaking with RTE ahead of the Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Martin admitted that by seeking his government’s intervention in the case, he was essentially asking the top U.N. court to broaden its interpretation of “genocide” that falls within the framework of the 1948 convention.
“The important point we’re making here is that in broadening the interpretation, we believe it encompasses what has happened in Gaza in particular, in terms of both the intent and in terms of the impact of the horrific Israeli attacks on the Palestinian people within Gaza in particular, where 40,000 people have been killed, millions displaced,” he said.
Ireland is the second European country after Spain that is requesting to intervene in the case, joining other nations including Colombia, Libya, Mexico, Nicaragua and Turkey, and the Palestinian Authority.
Pretoria in December brought its case accusing Jerusalem of genocide to The Hague. The ICJ, the main judicial arm of the U.N., rejected a request in January from South Africa to order Israel to halt the war.
In its provisional ruling, the court insisted that the Jewish state take all necessary means to prevent actions that could lead to genocide, and it dismissed a demand that residents of Gaza’s north be allowed to return.
On March 28, the ICJ approved additional measures, ruling that the IDF must ensure Gaza residents be given access to additional food, clothing, sanitation and medical assistance. The ICJ also demanded that Israel increase the number of land crossing points into Gaza for supplies.
A final court decision could take years. January’s ruling is binding under international law, but the U.N. court lacks an enforcement mechanism.
Israel’s Foreign Ministry in April chastised Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris, who referred to the Gaza war in his inaugural address but failed—in the ministry’s words “forgot”—the 100 hostages still held by Hamas.
Harris plans “to award additional prizes to terrorism, in the form of an ICJ declaration of intervention on the side of South Africa, the legal arm of the Hamas terrorist organization, and the possible recognition of a Palestinian state in the future,” ministry spokesman Lior Haiat said.
Dublin rejected Israel’s criticism, with a spokesman for Harris telling The Irish Times in April that the Irish leader has been even-handed in his response to the conflict, and has called for the hostages’ release.
Ireland has for years criticized Israel and its policies in Judea, Samaria and Gaza.