After Israel murdered more than 25,000 Palestinians, according to sources in Gaza, South Africa filed a lawsuit to open an investigation into a case of genocide in the Gaza Strip.

“Our legal team before The Hague is a high-level team, which also includes international lawyers based mainly in the United Kingdom,” said the president during a visit to the Houses of the Kingdom of Amandebele.

“We will plead our case, and the Minister of Justice, Ronald Lamola, will make the opening statement in court. Afterwards, our legal team will defend the case. We have taken steps for the ICJ to intervene and try to stop the genocide that is happening in Palestine, especially in Gaza,” he explained.

“We feel very strong, in addition to pledging our solidarity with the people of Palestine, that this is a matter of general and human justice to stop the genocide that is unfolding there,” Ramaphosa said.

“As South Africans we went through a very bitter period when we fought against apartheid, and in Israel we see similar characteristics of what we fought against.”

Minister Lamola explained that the South African legal team will ask the ICJ to issue a court order that allows them to prevent the State of Israel from continuing with the genocide. “The urgent thing is to stop the genocide, which is a principled position; and also the initiative is to ensure that we reestablish respect for the rule of law,” he said.

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