Middle East conflict | SA defends ICJ charges at UN General Assembly

JOHANNESBURG - South Africa defended its decision to charge Israel with Genocide at the UN yesterday.

It came after Israel lashed out at the country in the General Assembly yesterday.

Pretoria is expected to present its case in The Hague on Thursday.

Deputy Permanent Representative, Martinus van Schalkwyk says the court should also provide measures to protect the rights of those living in Gaza.

It was an eventful morning at the United Nations headquarters.

A group of protesters stormed the General Assembly hall and then later the Security Council chamber - demanding that the US stop  blocking  the UN from taking urgent action for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

They were later escorted out of the building.

Meanwhile inside the General Assembly chamber, Israel's Ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan criticised South Africa for taking it to the International Court of Justice claiming Pretoria is being hypocritical.

But South Africa hit back, saying for international law to be credible, it should be uniformly applied and not selectively.

It says member states must shoulder the responsibility to remove any obstacles to peace and the violations of international law.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Permanent Observer to the UN, Riyad Mansour

says Israel is destroying everything to make Gaza unlivable, Claiming the only thing facing the people of Gaza is destruction, displacement, Genocide and ethnic cleansing.

Another Security Council meeting has been called for on Friday to discuss the humanitarian situation.

The Palestinian mission to the UN has also called on the president of the council to convene a high-level inter-ministerial meeting later this month - as they continue to call for an immediate ceasefire which they say is the only moral, legitimate, and responsible position the

member states should take.