US defends Israel against South Africa's allegation of genocide filed to top UN court

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The United States will intervene in the genocide case against Israel brought at the United Nations’ highest court by South Africa, arguing that the accusations are false and warning that a ruling against Israel could undermine international law.

The International Court of Justice is considering whether Israel’s military operation in Gaza to crush Hamas amounts to genocide under a treaty drawn up after World War II. Israel, which was founded in the aftermath of the Holocaust, has vehemently denied the allegations.

In a filing obtained on Thursday by The Associated Press, the U.S. says that the accusations are part of a “broader campaign” against Israel and the Jewish people “to justify or encourage terrorism against them.”

Any party to the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide can intervene to contribute its assessment of the legal questions in the case. In 2023, over 30 countries backed Ukraine in a separate case it brought against Russia.

More than a dozen other countries have filed interventions in the Israel case, including Spain, the Netherlands and Ireland. Many take a different view to that of the United States.

The U.S. filing stresses that a finding of genocide requires a “specific intent” to commit the crime and cautions the court, which sits in The Hague, against “lowering the standard.”

“Civilian casualties, even widespread civilian casualties, are not necessarily probative of genocidal intent, particularly when they occur in the context of an armed conflict involving urban combat,” the U.S. argues in the filing.

Reed Rubenstein, a legal adviser at the State Department who represents the U.S., said that a finding against Israel would be a “radical repudiation” of the court’s precedent.

Such a decision would “feed the perception that the court is simply just one more tool in the ongoing pro-Hamas lawfare campaign” against Israel, Rubenstein told the AP.

Since a U.S.-brokered ceasefire came into effect last year, the heaviest fighting in Gaza has subsided, though regular Israeli fire continues.

The shaky agreement has led to more humanitarian aid and other supplies entering the enclave, though restrictions have been reimposed during the U.S. and Israeli attacks against Iran.

The ICJ has issued a series of orders concerning Israel’s conduct in Gaza since South Africa filed its case in 2023, including telling the country to do all it can to prevent death, destruction and any acts of genocide. In separate proceedings, the court has said that Israel must allow the U.N. aid agency in Gaza, known as UNRWA, to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian territory.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister in 2024 in connection with the Gaza conflict. The ICC said there was reason to believe the pair used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid and intentionally targeted civilians.

The Trump administration responded by sanctioning ICC officials, including nine judges and top prosecutors.

Associated Press reporter Matt Lee in Washington, D.C. contributed to this report.