The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that Cairo plans to join the legal case against Israel due to escalating aggression against Palestinian civilians, Al Jazeera reports.
The crisis in the Middle East has prompted action from the BRICS alliance, including calls for a ceasefire.
The ministry’s statement highlighted the increasing severity of Israeli attacks in Gaza, including the direct targeting of civilians, infrastructure destruction, and forced displacement of Palestinians.
South Africa initiated the case against Israel in January, accusing the country of committing genocide in Gaza. Since the conflict began in October, over 35,000 Palestinians, mainly women and children, have died, according to Palestinian sources. Israel’s assault followed a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel that killed at least 1,139 people, mostly civilians, based on Al Jazeera’s tally from Israeli statistics.
In January, the top United Nations court issued an interim ruling recognising a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza and mandated Israel to implement provisional measures to prevent genocidal acts. The court, located in The Hague, dismissed a subsequent emergency application by South Africa in March regarding Israel’s threat to attack Rafah.
Egypt joins Turkey and Colombia in formally requesting to participate in the case against Israel. This move follows Turkey’s announcement to join the case after Colombia sought inclusion to ensure the safety and existence of the Palestinian people. Egypt has urged Israel to comply with its obligations as an occupying power and adhere to the ICJ’s provisional measures, ensuring humanitarian aid access and preventing violations against Palestinians.
Legal proceedings in the genocide case are expected to take years. Although the ICJ’s rulings are binding, the court lacks enforcement mechanisms. Israel maintains that its actions in Gaza comply with international law, dismissing South Africa’s genocide case as baseless and accusing Pretoria of acting as Hamas’s legal arm.
Alon Liel, former director of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, described Egypt’s move as a significant diplomatic setback for Israel.
This development occurs amid ongoing Israeli battles with Hamas in northern Gaza and a mass evacuation order in Rafah, near Gaza’s border with Egypt. Israeli forces recently seized the Rafah border crossing, a critical entry point for aid, following a rejected ceasefire proposal mediated by Egypt and Qatar. The conflict has led to severe humanitarian conditions, with over one million displaced Palestinians in Rafah and warnings of a potential humanitarian catastrophe if Israeli ground assaults continue. UNRWA reports that about 110,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah recently.
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