The US, Hungary, and Fiji side with West Jerusalem, while over a dozen others support South Africa’s lawsuit
According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), several additional states have moved to participate in the Gaza genocide case at the UN’s highest court, exacerbating international differences regarding Israel’s military campaign in the Palestinian territory.
The case, initiated by South Africa in December 2023 amidst a worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza due to Israel’s offensive, charges the Jewish state with violating the 1948 UN Genocide Convention. Since then, more than a dozen countries have applied to join the proceedings.
In a Friday statement, the ICJ stated that Namibia, the US, Hungary, and Fiji each submitted declarations of intervention on March 12 in the proceedings under Article 63, which enables states party to the Genocide Convention to present their own interpretation of the treaty when it is in dispute. Iceland and the Netherlands filed similar declarations a day earlier.
South Africa contends that Israel’s actions in Gaza – including mass killings, extensive destruction, and the creation of living conditions threatening the survival of Palestinians – constitute genocide. Israel denies the accusation and maintains that its campaign is a legitimate act of self-defense against Hamas following the October 7 attack.
The US, Hungary, and Fiji have put forward legal arguments backing Israel’s stance and advocating for a strict interpretation of the Genocide Convention, warning that lowering the standard for proving genocidal intent could undermine international law. Washington characterized the lawsuit as legally flawed and urged the ICJ to reject the genocide allegation, arguing that the extremely high threshold for proving genocidal intent has not been met.
Namibia, Iceland, and the Netherlands have joined more than a dozen countries that have sided with South Africa, calling for a broader interpretation of the Genocide Convention that takes into account Israel’s overall conduct, conditions in Gaza, and the broader impact of the war.
The Gaza war was sparked by a Hamas incursion into Israel on October 7, 2023, when militants killed approximately 1,200 people and took over 250 hostages. West Jerusalem responded with a blockade, airstrikes, and a ground operation in Gaza that has killed over 72,000 Palestinians, according to the enclave’s health officials.
Despite a US-brokered ceasefire in October 2025, over 650 Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,740 injured since then, with Israel and Hamas accusing each other of regularly violating the agreement.