THE HAGUE (MNTV) – The Netherlands and Iceland have filed declarations of intervention in the genocide case brought by South Africa against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the court announced Thursday.
Both countries submitted declarations under Article 63 of the court’s statute, joining a growing list of nations — including Spain, Ireland, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Turkiye — that have intervened in the case, formally titled Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The Netherlands stressed in its declaration that forcible displacement of civilians, acts targeting children, and the deliberate withholding of humanitarian aid could constitute evidence of genocidal intent.
Iceland argued that genocidal intent need not be the sole reasonable inference from the acts committed in order for the court to make a genocide determination.
South Africa initiated the case in December 2023.
The ICJ has since issued three provisional orders requiring Israel to take measures to prevent acts falling under the Genocide Convention and to report regularly on steps taken.
The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the largest Muslim civil rights organisation in the United States, welcomed the interventions, calling them “principled decisions” that “strengthen the global demand for accountability.”
CAIR also called on the U.S. government to end support for Israeli military operations in Gaza.
The case remains ongoing.