The Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ministry Friday welcomed Bolivia’s declaration to join South Africa’s ICJ genocide case against Israel.
The Ministry confirmed in a press statement that Bolivia’s decision to join the case expresses its unwavering commitment to justice and the rule of international law, on the one hand, and demonstrates the profound solidarity and historic friendship between Palestine and Bolivia, on the other hand.
It called on all States parties to the Genocide Convention to join and announce their effective participation in South Africa’s ICJ genocide case against Israel, particularly that ending the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people and combating Israel’s impunity are the responsibilities that should be jointly tackled for the sake of humanity and international law.
Bolivia submitted its application on Tuesday to intervene in the case, which accuses Israel of committing ‘genocidal acts’ in Gaza, in violation of the Genocide Convention.
‘Israel’s genocidal war continues, an
d the Court’s orders remain dead letters to Israel,’ argued Bolivia in its submission to the ICJ. ‘Bolivia seeks to intervene since it considers that it has a responsibility to condemn the crime of genocide.’
South Africa filed the case at the court in The Hague in late 2023, accusing Israel, which has has been waging a genocidal aggression against Gaza since last October, of failing to uphold its commitments under the 1948 Genocide Convention.
Israel has proceeded with its genocidal offensive on the war-torn Strip in complete disregard of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ordered Israel in a legally binding decision to halt its military offensive in Rafah, which may violate its obligations under the Genocide Convention.
Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7, killing at least 42,065 Palestinians and injuring over 97,886 others.
Moreover, at least 10,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and
international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Source: Palestine news & Information Agency – WAFA
