Israel PM Netanyahu slams World Court's order on Gaza genocide: ‘Outrageous’

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday hit out at the World Court's order criticising Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, calling it “outrageous”. Responding to a genocide case brought by South Africa before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Netanyahu vowed to continue to do "what is necessary to defend the country".

“We will continue to do what is necessary to defend our country and defend our people…Like every country, Israel has a basic right to defend itself ... The World Court in the Hague justly rejected the outrageous demand to deprive us of this right,” Netanyahu said.

“…The mere claim that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians is not only false, it's outrageous, and the willingness of the court to even discuss this is a disgrace that will not be erased for generations,” he added.

The top UN court on Friday demanded that Israel must try to contain death and damage in its military offensive in the enclave - which was home to over 2.3 million people. However, it fell short of ordering a ceasefire in war-ravaged Gaza in a genocide case, which was the primary request of the litigant, South Africa.

“The state of Israel shall.... take all measures within its power to prevent the commission of all acts within the scope of Article II of the Genocide Convention,” the court said, adding that it would not throw out South Africa's genocide case against Israel.

The Israel-Hamas war

The war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7 after Hamas' attack in which around 1,200 Israelis were killed. Since then, Israel has been continuously attacking Gaza with the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stressing that they will continue its war till victory is achieved despite “international pressure”. According to the latest data from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, the war has claimed over 26,000 lives, with thousands of people being injured and misplaced.

(With inputs from agencies)

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