The International Court of Justice is expected to announce its decision this Friday on South Africa’s request for emergency measures to halt the war in Gaza.
The South African Justice Ministry spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri, mentioned on X that there is no official communication from the court regarding the delivery of the judgment. Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that he was not aware of the situation and is looking into it.
A South African government delegation has arrived in The Hague in anticipation of the judgment.
Earlier in the month, South Africa urged the ICJ to issue an emergency suspension of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, accusing it of state-led genocide.
Israel has refuted the genocide allegations, asserting its right to self-defense and clarifying its focus on targeting Hamas rather than Palestinian civilians.
The initial ruling by the ICJ will not address the main question of whether Israel is committing genocide. Instead, it will focus on potential emergency measures, akin to a restraining order, while the court examines the complete case—a process that typically spans years.
Israel initiated its military operation against Hamas in Gaza following the terror group’s October 7 attack on over 20 communities in southern Israel, resulting in the deaths of nearly 1,200 people, predominantly civilians, and the abduction of 240 individuals as hostages, with 132 still held captive in the Strip.
I am an experienced writer, analyst, and author. My exposure in English journalism spans more than 28 years. In the past, I have been working with daily The Muslim (Lahore Bureau), daily Business Recorder (Lahore/Islamabad Bureaus), Daily Times, Islamabad, daily The Nation (Lahore and Karachi). With daily The Nation, I have served as Resident Editor, Karachi. Since 2009, I have been working as a Freelance Writer/Editor for American organizations.
