Brazil has announced that it will move to intervene in a case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) alleging that Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza. The Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Wednesday that it was in the “final stages” of submitting a formal intervention to the ICJ regarding the case, originally brought by South Africa.
“The international community cannot remain inactive in the face of ongoing atrocities,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. “Brazil believes there is no longer room for moral ambiguity or political omission. Impunity undermines international legality and undermines the credibility of the multilateral system.” Brazil’s planned intervention in the case comes as Israeli abuses in Gaza, including harsh restrictions on aid that have brought the Gaza Strip to the brink of mass famine, are under growing scrutiny.
The Brazilian government expresses deep indignation at the recurring episodes of violence against the civilian population in the State of Palestine, not limited to the Gaza Strip but extending to the West Bank. Civilians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have been subjected to “recurring episodes of violence” and serious rights violations, including the “shameless use of starvation as a weapon of war”.
Several other countries, including Spain, Turkiye, and the Republic of Ireland, have also asked to intervene in the case, urging the ICJ to state that Israel is in violation of its obligations under the 1948 Genocide Convention. Brazil has itself become increasingly vocal in its criticism of Israel, with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva denouncing Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide at a BRICS meeting earlier this month.
The Israeli Embassy in Brasilia said the Brazilian statement used “harsh words that do not fully portray the reality of what is currently happening in Gaza”, while Brazil had also “completely ignored” the role of Hamas. Brazil’s National Israeli association CONIB said in a statement in response to Wednesday’s decision: “The breaking of Brazil’s longstanding friendship and partnership with Israel is a misguided move that proves the extremism of our foreign policy.”
The ICJ has yet to rule on whether Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, but issued an order in January 2024, demanding that Israel take action to prevent genocide in the Strip through acts such as allowing greater access to humanitarian aid. However, pressure has had little impact, and the United States and other Western allies have remained firmly supportive of Israel despite a growing chorus of experts and rights groups warning of systematic rights abuses in Gaza.
Israeli forces have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians waiting for aid at distribution sites since May, as reports of Palestinians dying of starvation continue to mount. United Nations officials have denounced the sites as “death traps”, and said they will not cooperate with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which supplanted existing international aid groups that Israel has largely barred from operating in Gaza.