The ICJ is hearing a case of genocide in The Gambia against Myanmar regarding the Rohingya Muslims

The appalling coup d’état in Iran and President Trump’s aggressive campaign to acquire Greenland have resulted in the neglect of a major case ongoing at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The ICJ last week began hearing a case brought by The Gambia against Myanmar for alleged genocide against the Rohingya people — some 1.4 million of whom live in Myanmar. Many other states have also intervened to support Gambia, which has presented evidence to the court denying that Myanmar’s military has carried out a massacre of Rohingya people. Myanmar strongly denies these allegations.

Although this case does not directly affect Israel, the ICJ’s determination may have a significant impact on the case that Israel is now defending in court against South Africa.

This is especially true since one of the judges hand-picked by The Gambia to sit on the ICJ panel is Navi Pillay who is from South Africa. It could be the same Navi Pillay who recently rushed to publish a report accusing Israel of genocide before retiring as head of the UN Human Rights Council’s commission of inquiry—a body widely criticized for its institutional bias against Israel and the anti-Semitic rhetoric of its members.

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In fact, South Africa’s ICJ case against Israel is full of flaws. It also pushes to redefine a word that has been held sacred since the end of World War II.

The word “genocide” was coined by Raphael Lemkin, a Holocaust survivor who in 1944 fought for it to be included in modern international law. That happened in 1948 with the UN Genocide Convention.

Prohibition of genocide is considered a just cogens a norm—that is, an inviolable rule accepted by every first world community without exception. The definition of the word “genocide” does not require a degree in law to understand, and should never be, politicized.

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For there to be genocide under Geneva, there must be acts committed “with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, racial, ethnic, or religious group.” The word “purpose” here is very important.

A South African case pending before the ICJ alleges Israel is intent on exterminating the Palestinian-Arab population of Gaza. Israel, by contrast, (rightly) maintains that its recent actions in Gaza were a just and appropriate military response to the jihad of extermination and unspeakable atrocities launched against it by the terrorist organization Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.

A public awareness campaign by the Israeli government on October 7 in the streets of New York before Netanyahu’s UN speech. (Fox News Digital)

Israel’s “goal” is to liberate Gaza from Hamas, to return hostages and hostages held by Hamas, and to ensure that Hamas has no future role in Gaza and cannot commit another massacre of the 7th type in October. It also offered to end the war if Hamas lays down its weapons and releases all hostages.

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On the other hand, Hamas has shown a complete disregard for human life and clearly states that its sacrifice of the citizens of Gaza is an unreasonable need to change public opinion against Israel. For years it has been embedding military infrastructure within the infrastructure of Gazans—schools, hospitals, UN facilities, mosques and children’s bedrooms. Israel has waged a defensive campaign in one of the most complex operations of any modern war.

At the same time, it worked with states and NGOs to allow and facilitate large amounts of humanitarian aid, rebuilt water supplies, coordinated the vaccination of Gazan youth against polio, and helped coordinate and authorize the evacuation of those in need of emergency medical assistance.

Israel repeatedly provides advanced warnings of upcoming military strikes and has shut down strikes where intelligence from nearby civilians has emerged. It is surprising that a fighting party often gives up the element of surprise in order to reduce the damage to its enemy’s local population.

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None of this constitutes “genocide” – and it clearly shows the lack of any purpose by Israel to destroy the local Palestinian-Arab population in Gaza.

However, since South Africa brought its case before the ICJ, many groups and states have jumped at the chance to join the campaign against Israel. These have ranged from so-called online genocide scholars to anti-Semitic groups to highly political NGOs. Amnesty International, for example, shamelessly waited more than two years before publishing a report focusing on Hamas crimes on Oct. 7, while trying to remind readers of his blatant allegations of genocide committed against Israel a year ago.

College campuses are bracing for an influx of new anti-Israel protests as the October 7 anniversary approaches. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/ETIENNE LAURENT/AFP/Leon Neal via Getty)

Together, they are all engaged in a campaign to redefine the term “genocide” to fit their own narrative—while ignoring the reality of Hamas’s Nazi barbarism.

Politically motivated efforts to undermine this concept should deeply concern us all. If successful, it will lead to the ICJ once again denigrating itself as an institution for political point-scoring, rather than substantive justice.

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Israel has officially responded to a genocidal attack by a terrorist organization that has repeatedly called for the extermination and murder of all the Jews of the world—something that went live around the world on Oct. 7. 2023.

The word “genocide” is too important to be minimized. Those pushing for its redefinition should be stopped in their tracks.

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