Israel will be dismayed that its arguments didn’t appear to influence the ICJ judges.
It says it’s gone to great lengths to ensure that civilians are out of harm’s way before sending troops into Rafah.
And it says it’s making sure that food and other vital supplies reach Gaza.
There are elements of truth to both of these arguments. More than 800,000 civilians have moved away from Rafah.
And while it’s true that very little aid has entered the southern Gaza Strip since the Rafah offensive began almost three weeks ago, Israel has allowed hundreds of trucks of commercial goods to enter, meaning that in parts of the territory, food is available (if not necessarily affordable).
Despite repeated warnings of famine, especially in the north, mass starvation has yet to manifest itself.
If anything, the situation in the north may have improved somewhat, thanks to the opening of additional crossing points.
But the court seemed unimpressed. A fresh wave of mass displacement, it argued, represented a significant new threat to the lives and wellbeing of the Palestinian population, which demanded fresh action.
South Africa argued that Rafah represented “the last line of defence” for the Gaza Strip. For Rafah to suffer the same fate as the territories other cities, it said, could lead to further irreparable damage to the entire Palestinian population.
This is what the court is trying to stop.
Israel says that is not the purpose of its operation in the south and looks set to press on.
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