The United Nations Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected Nicaragua’s request to order Germany to halt military and other aid to Israel and resume funding to the U.N. aid agency in Gaza.
The International Court of Justice ruled in a 15-1 vote rejecting the request, effectively siding with Germany, saying the legal conditions for such an order were not met. Germany told the judge it exported almost no arms to Israel.
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However, the 16-judge panel refused to completely throw out the case as requested by Germany. The court will continue to hear arguments from both sides on the merits of Nicaragua’s lawsuit alleging that Germany failed to stop genocide in the Gaza Strip by supporting Israel. This lawsuit will likely take months or even years.
The court’s president, Nawaf Salam, said the court “remains deeply concerned about the devastating living conditions of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.”
He said the court “reminds all States of their international obligations regarding the transfer of arms to parties to armed conflict, in order to avoid the risk that such weapons will be used in violation of international law.” I think this is particularly important,” he added.
On Tuesday, April 30, 2024, Presiding Judge Nawaf Salam, fourth from the right, opens the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands. The court is where the United Nations Supreme Court ruled on Nicaragua’s request for a judge’s order against Germany. It called for an end to military aid to Israel, arguing that Berlin’s support was enabling genocide and violations of international humanitarian law in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Peter DeJong)
The reading of the verdict took less than 20 minutes.
Germany’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the ruling in a post about X.
“Germany is not a party to the Middle East conflict. On the contrary, we are working day and night towards a two-state solution,” the ministry said. “We are the largest provider of humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people. We are working to ensure that aid reaches the people of Gaza.”
But he added that Israel has the right to defend itself and said more than 100 hostages were still being held by Hamas, which is “using Gaza residents as shields and abusing them.”
The court found that since the start of the conflict, Germany has granted Israel only four licenses to export weapons of war: two for training ammunition, one for testing purposes, and one for “3,000 portable anti-tank weapons.” It was pointed out that there was one item on consignment.
Nicaragua, a longtime ally of the Palestinians, claims that Germany is enabling the genocide by sending arms and other aid to Israel. Nicaragua’s defense chief, Carlos José Arguello Gómez, told reporters in court that Nicaragua would proceed with its legal arguments.
Israel, which is not a party to the lawsuit between Nicaragua and Germany, strongly denies that the attack on Gaza constitutes an act of genocide.
The Nicaraguan government noted that at least the court reminded “all countries, including Germany, of their international obligations regarding arms transfers to Israel.”
“No country can claim to be unaware of its obligations regarding the genocide in Gaza and other violations of international law,” the government statement said.
Nicaragua’s lawsuit is the latest legal bid by a country with historic ties to the Palestinian people to stop Israeli attacks.
Late last year, South Africa accused Israel of genocide in court. The incident comes as Israel’s allies face growing calls for an end to arms supplies and as some countries, including Germany, step up criticism of the war.
The court also rejected Nicaragua’s request to order Germany to resume direct funding to UN aid agencies in Gaza.
Israel says it is acting in self-defense after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people.
More than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip since Israel began its offensive, according to the Gaza Strip’s Ministry of Health. The death toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but the majority of the dead are women and children.
Israel blames Hamas for the high civilian death toll, as the insurgents are fighting in densely populated residential areas. The military said, without providing evidence, that it had killed more than 12,000 insurgents.
Germany has been a staunch supporter of Israel for decades. However, as civilian casualties in Gaza soar, Berlin has gradually changed its stance, increasing its criticism of the humanitarian situation in Gaza and speaking out against the ground offensive in Rafah.
In the case brought by South Africa, the ICJ ordered Israel in January to do everything in its power to prevent death, destruction and acts of genocide in Gaza. In March, the court issued new interim measures ordering Israel to take steps to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza, where experts say starvation is imminent.
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Meanwhile, a separate investigation by another international tribunal, the International Criminal Court, also worries Israeli authorities.
The ICC launched an investigation in 2021 into possible war crimes by Israeli and Palestinian extremists dating back to the 2014 Israel-Hamas war. The investigation also looks into Israeli settlement construction in occupied territory where Palestinians hope to form a future state. Israeli authorities have expressed concern in recent days about the possibility of an arrest warrant being issued in the case.
