History will judge Israel ‘very harshly’ for the atrocities committed in Gaza - Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday, 25 September, that history would judge Israel “very harshly” for the atrocities it has committed in the Gaza Strip, saying it was a concern that Israel had ignored the rulings of the World Court. 

“It is a matter of concern to us that the state of Israel, aided and abetted by other governments, has just completely ignored the rulings of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the very countries that talk about adherence to the rule of law are the ones who are actually trashing the notion of the rule of law; who are disregarding the rule of law,” Ramaphosa told reporters at a press conference on the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York.

“If countries and members of the UN do that, what else is left? Because we’re just really shredding and tearing to pieces the values and the principles that we should all be standing for.”

Ramaphosa’s remarks come after his speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, where he told world leaders that the relevance of the UN and multilateral processes in maintaining peace and security were “being wilfully undermined”. He said the UN Security Council, in particular, had proven “ineffective in its current form” and had failed to “ensure accountability and uphold international law”.

Read more: ‘Trade now being used as a weapon,’ Ramaphosa tells UN in jab at Trump tariffs

Last Thursday, the US once again vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution that would have demanded an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages, and that Israel lift restrictions on aid to Palestinians, saying it did not go far enough in condemning Hamas. 

The 14 other UN Security Council members voted in favour of the resolution. It was the sixth time the US had cast a veto in the Security Council over Israel’s 23-month military campaign in Gaza, according to a Reuters report.  

Israel’s assault on Gaza, which has killed at least 65,000 Palestinians and wounded more than 160,000, and the deepening humanitarian crisis in the enclave have been among the pressing issues discussed by world leaders who gathered in New York this week. During Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel, at least 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage. 

It is a matter of concern to us that the state of Israel, aided and abetted by other governments, has just completely ignored the rulings of the International Court of Justice [ICJ], and the very countries that talk about adherence to the rule of law are the ones who are actually trashing the notion of the rule of law; who are disregarding the rule of law.

Last week, a UN Independent Commission of Inquiry found that Israel had committed, and continued to commit, genocide in Gaza, adding to a growing number of international bodies and rights groups that have come to the same conclusion. 

“Consistent with the case that South Africa brought before the International Court of Justice, there is growing global consensus that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Just last week, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry found that Israel is responsible for the commission of genocide in Gaza. As Palestinians continue to face genocide and famine, we have a duty to act,” Ramaphosa said in his speech to the UN General Assembly. 

South Africa filed an application at the ICJ in December 2023, asking the court to declare that Israel was in violation of its obligations under the 1948 Genocide Convention. 

Read more: How South Africa seeks an order to stop the carnage in Gaza and prevent a genocide

In January 2024, the ICJ agreed with South Africa’s argument that there was a plausible case of genocide to be heard, and ordered Israel to prevent genocide, to prevent and punish incitement to genocide, and to increase humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

The ICJ subsequently issued further interim orders on provisional measures on 28 March and 24 May last year, calling on Israel to end its restrictions on humanitarian aid and cease its hostilities in southern Gaza.

In the nearly two years since South Africa filed its case against Israel at the World Court, these binding interim orders have not been adhered to by Israel. In a speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday morning, UN Secretary-General António Guterres called on Israel to comply with the rulings of the ICJ.

“The International Court of Justice has issued legally binding provisional measures in the case named: Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip. Since then, a famine has been declared, and the killing has intensified. The measures stipulated by the ICJ must be implemented – fully and immediately.

“Nothing can justify the horrific Hamas terror attacks of October 7 and the taking of hostages, both of which I have repeatedly condemned. And nothing can justify the collective punishment of the Palestinian people and the systematic destruction of Gaza,” said Guterres.

Ramaphosa told reporters on Thursday that South Africa would continue to push for a ceasefire, and that it was “hoping that the International Court of Justice and its rulings will declare such”. 

“As much as they’re maybe ignored, in the end it is very much like what the apartheid government did. It was resolution, after resolution, after resolution that came to the United Nations, but in the end, the chickens did come home to roost. The apartheid system had to come to an end, and even the atrocities that are being committed in Gaza will and must come to an end,” said Ramaphosa. 

“The coalition that is now building against what Israel is doing and in favour of finding a solution – particularly a two-state solution and calling for a ceasefire – will gain traction, and it will become a reality. And history will judge them very harshly – the legacy that they leave for their children and grandchildren is going to be a very heavy and a very negative legacy,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly on Friday morning and meet with US President Donald Trump next week, Reuters reported. The news agency reported that in his speech, Netanyahu was expected to denounce leaders who had recently recognised a Palestinian state.

According to the publication, the US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, said on Wednesday he was confident that a breakthrough on Gaza would be secured after Trump presented a 21-point peace plan to the leaders of several Middle Eastern countries on Tuesday. 

Israel has continuously denied accusations that it is committing genocide in Gaza. In response to the UN Commission’s report, Israel accused the commission of having a political agenda against it and diverging from its mandate, Reuters reported. DM

Victoria O’Regan is a 2025 Dag Hammarskjöld Journalism Fellow whose reporting on the 80th UN General Assembly and its activities in New York has been sponsored by the Dag Hammarskjöld Fund for Journalists.