Israel-Hamas war: South Africa urges ICJ Rafah intervention

Three people who displayed images of paragliders at a pro-Palestinian march in central London, a week after the October 7attacks in Israel, were found guilty of terrorism offenses.

Two of the women attached images of paragliders to their backs, while another tuck one to the handle of a placard during the march. 

The three were charged under the Terrorism Act with carrying or displaying an article to arouse reasonable suspicion that they were supporters of Hamas, considered a terrorist organization in the UK, US, Germany and others.

They took part in a demonstration a week after Hamas militants used paragliders to enter Israel from Gaza on October 7. About 1,200 Israelis were killed in the terror attack and about 240 were abducted and taken to Gaza.

At a trial at Westminster magistrates court, two of the defendants argued that police had been mistaken about the images, fueled by a social media storm, and the images were actually parachutes that were a “well-known nationalist symbol of peace."

The leader of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah says that his troops would only end their regular shelling of northern Israel when a "ceasefire" puts an end to Israeli "aggression" in the Gaza Strip.

"On that day the shooting stops in Gaza, we will stop the shooting in the south [of Lebanon]," said Hassan Nasrallah in a televised address on Tuesday night but warned: "If they [the Israelis] broaden the confrontation, we will do the same."

Iran-backed Hezbollah has been trading almost daily fire with the Israeli military across Lebanon's southern border in support of its smaller Palestinian ally Hamas. At least 243 people have been killed on the Lebanese side, mainly Hezbollah fighters but also 30 civilians, according to the AFP news agency.

The Israeli military says nine soldiers and six civilians have been killed while thousands of Israelis have been evacuated amid fears of another full-scale conflict.

Foreign ministers from countries including Germany, France and the United Kingdom have visited the Lebanese capital Beirut in recent weeks in an effort to ease tensions, but Nasrallah said:

"All the delegations that have come to Lebanon over the past four months ... have only one goal: the security of Israel, protecting Israel."

French Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne said on Monday he had put forward "proposals" during a recent visit to Lebanon which, according to the Reuters news agency, included the withdrawal of Hezbollah's elite Radwan unit at least 10 kilometers (six miles) from the border.

"Let nobody think Lebanon is weak and afraid, or that they can impose conditions," Nasrallah said, warning that, should Israel launch a full-scale with Hezbollah, which is significantly bigger and better armed than Hamas, they should "prepare shelters, hotels, schools and tents for two million people" who would be displaced and "not return."

In late January, Israeli defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israeli troops would "very soon go into action" near the country's northern border with Lebanon.

Last week, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz warned that "time is running out" to reach a diplomatic solution, saying: "Israel will act militarily to return the evacuated citizens" to its northern border area if no diplomatic solution is reached.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed political party with a military wing, based in Lebanon. It is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and Germany while the EU lists its armed wing as a terrorist group.

France on Tuesday announced that it was adopting sanctions against "extremist Israeli settlers who have been guilty of violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank."

In a statement the French foreign ministry said that 28 individuals were to be targeted "by an administrative ban on entering French territory.

The foreign ministry said that the measures came as settler violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank had increased over recent months.

The ministry said it was in favor of sanctioning violent settlers at European level and added that work was being done with European partners to that end.  

Earlier this month US President Joe Biden signed an executive order imposing sanctions on four Jewish settlers over violence against Palestinian civilians in the occupied West Bank.

United Nations figures show that daily settler attacks have more than doubled in the more than four months since the Hamas terror attack and Israel's ensuing assault on the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.

Top intelligence officials from the United States, Israel, Qatar and Egypt reportedly met in Cairo for further cease-fire talks on Tuesday.

Multiple news agencies reported that CIA chief William Burns and Mossad head David Barnea were among the representatives to attend the talks.

Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani also arrived in Cairo for the meeting.

A senior Egyptian official told the Associated Press that the meeting would focus on "crafting a final draft" of a six-week truce, with guarantees that the parties would continue negotiations toward a permanent cease-fire.

The head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) said that calls for it to be dismantled were short-sighted and would diminish its ability to respond to the humanitarian crisis.

"I have talked to the member states about all these calls to have UNRWA dismantled, to be terminated. I have warned about the impact, I have said that these calls are short-sighted," UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said after a meeting with member states at the United Nations in Geneva.

"The impact is not just on the short-term. It not just weakens our collective ability to respond to the humanitarian crisis..." Lazzarini said.

Lazzarini has been facing questions about a newly found tunnel under the UN organization's headquarters in Gaza and also allegations that UNRWA employees have been collaborating with Hamas, a designated terror organization in the US, the EU, and several other countries.

Israeli intelligence claims 12 of UNRWA's estimated 13,000 employees were involved in the Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel on October 7.

Nine of those singled out were fired while an internal investigation was launched.

The allegations have led to the suspension of contributions to the agency from a number of UN states, including Germany, France, Italy and the Netherlands.

Qatari broadcaster Al Jazeera says two of its journalists had been severely wounded in an Israeli air strike near Rafah, in southern Gaza.

Al Jazeera said that Ismail Abu Omar and cameraman Ahmad Matar were in northern Rafah documenting the living conditions of displaced Palestinians.

The broadcaster on Tuesday reported that "they were directly targeted by a missile fired by a drone…"

Omar had to have his leg amputated as a result of the injuries he sustained, to save his life, the broadcaster said.

According to the press freedom watchdog the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) at least 85 journalists and media workers were among the more than 28,000 people killed since the Israel-Hamas war began.

South Africa's government said it had made an urgent request to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to consider whether Israel's decision to expand military operations into Rafah required the court to use its power to prevent breach of rights of Palestinians in Gaza.

South Africa's office of the presidency said in a statement "it was gravely concerned that the unprecedented military offensive against Rafah, as announced by the State of Israel, has already led to and will result in further large scale killing, harm and destruction."

The statement went on to say: "This would be in serious and irreparable breach of the Genocide Convention and of the Court's Order of 26 January 2024." 

The ICJ last month ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent its troops from committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, in a case brought by South Africa.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Tuesday expressed concern over Israel's plan to launch a large offensive in the southern Gazan city of Rafah.

"I am especially concerned about the announcement by the Israeli government of a large ground military operation in Rafah," Baerbock said at a news conference with the Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad al-Malki in the German capital.

"Of course, it is completely clear that also in Rafah, there is an unbelievably large net of [the] Hamas terrorist organization," she said, adding Israel has a right to defend itself from terrorism.

Baerbock went on to say that Israel had a duty to guarantee "safe corridors" for civilians in Rafah.

"If action is to be taken now against the terror organization in Rafah, then it is ... the responsibility of the Israeli army to provide safe corridors for the people who have sought protection there," Baerbock said.

Germany's top diplomat will travel to Israel on Wednesday again for political talks as part of the two-day trip.

Berlin supports the establishment of a future Palestinian state as part of a negotiated two-state solution that is acceptable to both sides.

The Kremlin is ready to back any move that could lead to the release of hostages and a ceasefire, Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says.

"We are ready to support any action that will lead to the release of the hostages and a ceasefire," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.

"But we believe that the actions should be constructive, aimed at a comprehensive solution of the problem within the framework of international law and previously adopted Security Council resolutions," Peskov added.

The comments come as international pressure continues to mount with calls for Israel to halt an offensive in the southern Gazan city of Rafah.

Israeli forces managed to rescue two hostages during overnight operations Monday in the city.

Of the some 240 hostages abducted in the October 7 attack attacks led by Hamas, a total of 112 have now been freed. Some 130 are still unaccounted for. Of these, about 30 are thought to be dead, according to Israeli officials.

More than 200 people were taken hostage on October 7 in designated a terrorist organization by the US, EU and Israel among others. Around 130 are believed to still be in Gaza.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has reported that the Israeli government proposed to evacuate the southern Gazan city of Rafah into extensive tent cities.

The US publication cited Egyptian officials who said Israel's proposal envisaged 15 tented camps.

Each of the camps would contain around 25,000 tents and Egypt would be responsible for setting up the camps along with field hospitals, the officials said.

According to several UN agencies, some 1.5 million are sheltering in and around the city as Israel continues operations to root out the Hamas militant group, considered a terrorist organization by the US, EU and other governments.

The WSJ reported that the proposal had been submitted to Egypt in recent days.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said Israel will provide "safe passage" to civilians trying to leave, but foreign governments and aid organizations — as well as Gazans — questioned where they could go.

"As it is, there is no place that is currently safe in Gaza," said United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday said dozens of Hamas militants had been killed in Gaza over a 24-hour period.

The IDF said forces "eliminated over 30 terrorists" in fighting west of Khan Younis and that they had deepened operational control of the area.

It listed instances in which Israeli forces had engaged with Hamas militants and posted videos of some of the aerial strikes conducted.

The death toll provided by the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza does not differentiate between civilians and combatants. Israel claims to have killed thousands of Hamas militants.

Hamas is listed as a terrorist organization in the European Union, the United States, and Israel.

China on Tuesday urged Israel to halt its military operation in Gaza's southern border city of Rafah and warned of serious humanitarian consequences if fighting did not stop.

"We oppose and condemn acts against civilians and international law. We call on Israel to stop military operations as soon as possible," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in a statement.

The statement went on to say that Israel needed to "do everything possible to avoid casualties among innocent civilians and prevent a more devastating humanitarian disaster in Rafah."

There has been mounting international pressure for Israel to agree to a cease-fire with the Hamas militant group.

According to several UN agencies, some 1.5 million are sheltering in and around the city, having fled areas in northern Gaza, since Israel launched operations to root out Hamas after the Islamist group's terror attacks on October 7 last year.

US President Joe Biden on Monday said that the military operation in Rafah "should not proceed without a credible plan" that would ensure the safety of the people sheltering there.

"Many people there have been displaced — displaced multiple times, fleeing the violence to the north, and now they're packed into Rafah — exposed and vulnerable.  They need to be protected," Biden said as he hosted Jordan's King Abdullah II.

kb/rc (AFP, AP, Reuters, dpa)