Israeli Pressure Campaign to Derail Case Accusing It of Genocide
Multiple sources have reported on a cable sent by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on January 4 directing Israeli diplomats to create international pressure on the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to not issue an injunction that orders Israel to suspend its military campaign in Gaza.
Fearing "significant potential implications that are not only in the legal world but have practical bilateral, multilateral, economic, security ramifications," the ministry instructed Israeli embassies to ask diplomats and politicians at the highest level "to publicly acknowledge that Israel is working together with international actors to increase the humanitarian aid to Gaza, as well as to minimize damage to civilians, while acting in self defence after the horrible October 7 attack by a genocidal terrorist organization."
Israeli ambassadors were also instructed to urgently work on obtaining such statements before the hearing. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu likewise sent letters to dozens of world leaders along the same lines.
The U.S. was the first to comply. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken personally issued a statement at a news conference in Tel Aviv. The South African submission to the ICJ, he said, "distracts the world from efforts for peace and security." Moreover, he deemed the charge of genocide "meritless."
Blinken, whose hands are dripping with Palestinian blood, said he found the charge of genocide against Israel "particularly galling" because, according to him, the real problem is Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran. He repeated the claim that Israel is doing its best to be careful in its campaign to wipe out Hamas.
His remarks on the eve of the public hearings on South Africa's case before the ICJ served to underscore U.S. isolation in its complicit role in the Israeli genocidal actions against the Palestinian people, especially in Gaza.
This article was published in
Volume 54
Number 4 - January 12, 2024
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2024/Articles/MS54046.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca