With Gaza Death Toll Near 39,000, ICJ Ruling On Genocide An Ignored Warning For Israel

As the Israel-Hamas war rages on, Israeli forces have increased their attacks in the Gaza Strip. On Tuesday, the war-torn strip was struck by three air strikes in less than an hour, killing nearly 50 Palestinians.

As Israel ups its attacks and strikes against the Palestinian people, the ruling passed by the International Court of Justice appears to be a distant memory for Israel.

ICJ Ruling On Genocide - An Ignored Warning For Israel

On January 26, the International Court of Justice stated that it was "plausible" that Israel was committing genocidal acts in Gaza Strip and Palestinian territories.

The ruling came after South Africa filed a case against Tel Aviv and accused it of violating the Genocide Convention of 1948.

"The state of Israel shall take all measures in its power to prevent all acts mentioned in Article 2 of the Genocide Convention of 1948," stated ICJ adding that Israel must submit a report to notify the ICJ what has been done to uphold the order and to scale back the offensive in Gaza.

Neither has Israel submitted a report before the world court nor has it scaled back its military operations in Gaza.

Shortly after the ICJ's ruling, the Israeli government expressed its disapproval of the ruling and has time and again stated that it will not scale back its operations in Gaza until Hamas has been eliminated.

Israel's ongoing attacks in Gaza have also thrown ceasefire talks with Hamas in a limbo with mediator countries US, Egypt and Qatar struggling to make progress.

Gaza Death Toll Nears 39,000

Back in January 2024, the death toll in Gaza stood at 26,083 people with over 64,400 people injured in Gaza and West Bank.

Six months later, the Gaza death toll is nearing 39,000 killed and organisations have stated that the death toll may be much higher than the number available with the Health Ministry.

As per a letter published in the medical journal Lancet, researchers have claimed that the final figure of deaths in Gaza and Palestinian territories could round up to be around 186,000. 

As of July 16, 2024, the death toll in Gaza stands at 38,713 people with over 89,166 people injured in the Gaza Strip. In the Occupied West Bank, around 576 people have been killed and over 5,300 are injured.