Israel lobbying US Congress to force SA to drop ICJ case – report
Israel is reportedly lobbying members of the US Congress to press South Africa to drop its legal proceedings in the International Court of Justice over the war in Gaza.
Axios is reporting that Israeli diplomats have been instructed by their foreign ministry to ask members of Congress to issue public statements condemning South Africa's actions against Israel and threaten that it could lead to suspending U.S. trade relations with the country.
In an article published on Tuesday morning, Axios said the suspension of trade relations is unlikely to happen as the US wants to maintain its relationship with South Africa in order to counter the influence of Russia and China.
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South Africa's December 2023 case alleges that Israel's Gaza offensive launched in retaliation for Hamas' bloody October 7 attack on Israel breached the 1948 UU convention on genocide.
Israel has strongly denied the accusation.
In a ruling in January, the ICJ told Israel to do everything possible to prevent acts of genocide during its military operation in Gaza, which have left more than 40,000 dead.
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