Ireland preparing to intervene in South Africa’s International Court of Justice case against Israel under the 1948 Genocide Convention

Tánaiste Micheál Martin will tell cabinet that he has told his officials to prepare a draft Declaration of Intervention in the case, following an initial legal analysis.

Ireland is preparing to intervene in South Africa’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) case against Israel under the 1948 Genocide Convention.

Tánaiste Micheál Martin will tell cabinet that he has told his officials to prepare a draft Declaration of Intervention in the case, following an initial legal analysis.

Third parties do not join the case on one side or another and do not offer evidence, but argue for an interpretation of one or more of the provisions of the Genocide Convention.

When the declaration is completed, Mr Martin will submit it for consideration by the Government and, if approved, will arrange to have it filed with the ICJ in The Hague.

Last December South Africa instituted proceedings at the ICJ claiming Israel had violated obligations under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide during military operations following October 7. South Africa also asked the Court to order Provisional Measures including an immediate suspension of military operations in Gaza.

The case saw the ICJ order Israel to take measures to prevent and punish any direct incitement of genocide in its war on Gaza. However, it did stop short in calling for a ceasefire.

The humanitarian situation in Gaza has since deteriorated and the UN has warned that half of the population of Gaza faces imminent famine and 100% of the population face acute food insecurity.

Earlier this week, the Tánaiste called Israel’s announcement that it would block all UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) aid to the north of Gaza completely unacceptable.

South Africa has now requested the Court to order additional Provisional Measures. Article 63 of the Statute of the ICJ states other parties to that Convention have the right to intervene in proceedings.

In a Dáil resolution in January, the Government undertook to "strongly consider an intervention in the South Africa v Israel case at the ICJ, as a matter of urgency". At the time, Mr Martin said that Ireland would consider its position, but said that “ this case could go on for three or four years. I don’t think people on the ground in Israel or Palestine have three or four years."

There is no end in sight to the war, which has killed over 32,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

The fighting has left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins, displaced most of its residents and driven a third of its population of 2.3m to the brink of famine.