The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has issued precautionary measures against Israel, requiring it to take action “immediately and effectively” that prevent the commission genocide in Gaza and punish any incitement to exterminate Palestinians in the Strip, although did not demand a “truce” at the request of South Africa.

The list of nine precautionary measures urgently requested by South Africa at the UN’s top court has been reduced to six, all aimed at calling on Israel to prevent genocide against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Stripalbeit without any order aimed at stopping military activity in the Gaza Strip, a measure that led to Pretoria’s request.

The court found the risk of genocide against a specific group to be “plausible”Palestinians in Gaza, and based on the arguments presented by South Africa at the hearing on 11 January, there is a risk “cause irreparable harm” the group with an offensive launched by Israel following an attack by the Islamist group Hamas on October 7 that killed 1,200 people.

In an interview for Aristegui Live, Ambassador Jorge Alvarez Fuentesmember of the Mexican Council on Foreign Affairs, noted: “When the medical infrastructure is destroyed, when the entry of water, food and humanitarian aid is not allowed, these are actions that will determine on the merits what the Court will do.” states: “If this is truly genocide.”

Where did the term “genocide” come from?

It was not until the 1940s that “genocide” emerged as a legal concept following the work of Rafael Lemkin, Polish Jew who worked as a lawyer in the developing field of international law.

According to biographer Douglas Irwin-Erickson, Lemkin believed that the laws of war were insufficient to combat the new forms of political violence plaguing the world.

It was then, in 1933, 10 months after Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany and began passing oppressive laws against German Jews, that a lawyer asked the League of Nations to take action against German Jews. “barbarism” what the politician did.

After Hitler came to power, Lemkin managed to escape and take refuge in the United States, where in 1944 he published a book entitled Axis rule in occupied Europe. It was there that he used a new term: genocide.

1948 Agreement

Genocide became a crime under international law when the General Assembly of the newly created UN declared it in December 1946.

Two years later, in 1948. Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide accepted an agreement that described “hateful attack” an attempt to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.

What actions are considered genocide under international law?

Killing group members. This means that the author caused the death of people from a certain group in order to destroy it in whole or in part.

Serious damage to the physical or mental integrity of group members. Such behavior includes torture, acts considered inhuman or degrading, rape, sexual violence and other acts that ultimately cause serious harm to the integrity of the victims.

The deliberate subjection of a group to conditions of existence that lead to its physical destruction, complete or partial. In these cases, the perpetrator deliberately deprives group members of resources necessary for their survival, such as food or medicine, or drives them out of their homes.

Measures aimed at preventing births within a group. These actions can be forced sterilization, separation of men and women, and forced abortion, all aimed at the disappearance of the group.

Forced transfer of children from a group to another group. In this case, such behavior applies to minors under 18 years of age who are forced to flee through threats, intimidation, detention and other acts of coercion.

Can the crime of genocide be prescribed?

Like crimes against humanity and war crimes, genocide is not prescribed, so no time limit for investigation and prosecution.

With information from UN And Amnesty International