The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to examine German arms exports to Israel again on Monday after Nicaragua brought an action against Germany before the court in The Hague, accusing it of aiding and abetting genocide.
The lawsuit asserts that the arms exports violate the Genocide Convention because the weapons are being used by Israel in attacks in the Gaza Strip.
Germany rejects the allegations as unfounded and maintains that the court has no jurisdiction in the matter. Israel itself is not a party to the proceedings.
Germany won the first round of the case in 2024. At the time, the UN’s highest court rejected an emergency request by Nicaragua. As a result, Germany was not required to halt its arms exports immediately to Israel. However, the judges did not grant the German application to dismiss Nicaragua’s case in its entirety.
German legal representatives will seek at this hearing to prevent the case from proceeding further. They will present their arguments as to why, in their view, the court does not have jurisdiction. Nicaragua will respond to those arguments. It is not known when the judges will issue a ruling.
This is already the second genocide case related to the Gaza war before the ICJ. At the end of 2023, South Africa lodged legal action against Israel before the court, accusing it of genocide in the Gaza Strip.