Spain announced that it will join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice over the ongoing Israeli aggression in the besieged Palestinian Gaza Strip.

Spain made this decision so that “peace returns to Gaza and the Middle East,” Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares explained in a press conference on Thursday.

“A large-scale war that does not distinguish between civil and military objectives” is taking place, and the risk of escalation is increasing,” he said.

South Africa submitted the case in late December 2023, accusing Israel of committing acts of genocide in the Gaza Strip in violation of the 1948 Genocide Convention.

On January 26, the ICJ ordered Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide and to ensure that its military does not commit genocide.

It further called on Israel to halt incitement against Palestinians as a group and to take immediate measures to ensure humanitarian aid.

On May 24, the ICJ ordered Israel to stop its military offensive in Rafah in southern Gaza with immediate effect.

“The ICJ precautionary measures are very far from being fulfilled,” Mr Albares remarked. “Spain does not rule on the crime itself; that is the court’s job.”

Mr Albares added that Spain will present a report to the court to justify its participation in the case.

(Xinhua/NAN)