Brazil to join South Africa’s genocide case against Israel

The case, first filed by South Africa in December 2023, alleges that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza violates the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
Brazil is preparing to formally join the international legal case led by South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.
This marks a significant diplomatic move by Brazil, aligning itself with several other nations that have either joined or backed the case as the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to worsen.
In a statement on Wednesday, Brazil’s foreign ministry confirmed it was “in the final phase of presenting a formal intervention” in the case, which has already seen formal participation by Colombia, Libya, and Mexico, and received broader support from other countries.
The case, first filed by South Africa in December 2023, alleges that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza violates the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention.
The ICJ, which is the UN’s highest judicial body, has issued a series of rulings, most recently in May 2024, directing Israel to take all necessary measures to prevent acts of genocide.
These include facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance to avert famine in Gaza. Despite these rulings, aid and rights organisations say that food access remains dangerously limited.
Brazil’s foreign ministry criticised what it called “indiscriminate violence” against civilians and condemned “the blatant use of hunger as a weapon of war.”
The ministry added, “The international community cannot remain inert in the face of ongoing atrocities.”
Israel, which has firmly denied the genocide accusations, responded Wednesday to mounting claims that its actions are responsible for Gaza’s worsening food crisis.
Over 100 humanitarian and rights organisations have warned that “mass starvation” is spreading through the besieged enclave.
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, has been a vocal critic of Israel’s Gaza operations and has repeatedly described the actions as “genocide.”
His government’s decision to join the ICJ case underscores a broader stance on defending international law and increasing calls for accountability.
The genocide convention defines such a crime as any of five acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.
The ICJ case, which is ongoing, has added to diplomatic pressure on Israel to end its military operations in Gaza that began after Hamas attacked Israeli territory on October 7, 2023.