The International Court of Justice issues its decision today regarding requests for interim measures in the case of genocide committed by Israel in Gaza (Anatolia)
The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) denounced the US State Department’s claim that Israel did not commit genocide in the Gaza Strip, considering these statements “a blatant American attempt to pressure Israel to escape condemnation.”
In a statement published by Izzat al-Rishq, a leader in Hamas, at dawn today, Friday, on the movement’s official platforms, he said, “The US State Department’s claim that Israel did not commit genocide, and that this accusation is baseless, and that there is no moral equivalence between Hamas and the enemy’s government.” “The Zionist movement is a blatant and rejected American attempt to pre-empt the decision of the International Court of Justice.”
He added, "American statements would pressure Israel to escape condemnation for committing massacres and genocide that are still continuing to this day, with full American support and partnership."
In this context, Al-Rishq condemned the American position towards Israeli practices in Gaza, explaining that “Washington still refuses to stop the aggression against Gaza, by preventing the Security Council from taking a decision to stop the aggression against our Palestinian people,” and pointed out that it continues to “provide the occupation with weapons and ammunition to bomb women and children.”
He added, "Washington's position makes it a biased party and an accomplice in the murders, and it has no right to speak about values and morals and the international laws that it violates in broad daylight and in full view of the entire world."
No basis
The US State Department said - in a statement - that “there is no basis for the allegations that Israel committed genocide,” indicating that it would not preempt the decision of the International Court of Justice.
It also expressed its expectations that Israel would abide by international law and take additional steps to protect civilians.
The US State Department spoke - in the statement - of the lack of what it called “any moral equivalence between the Hamas group and the government of Israel.”
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken discussed - by telephone - with South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Naledi Pandor the conflict in Gaza, including the need to protect civilians and humanitarian aid.
The American statement said that the two ministers also discussed working for a lasting regional peace that guarantees the security of Israel and promoting the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.
These positions come ahead of an expected decision, later Friday, by the International Court of Justice, regarding requests for interim measures in the genocide case filed by South Africa against Israel on charges of violating the United Nations Convention, during its raging war on Gaza.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies