South Africa’s genocide suit against Israel in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) could prove to be a watershed moment for efforts to hold Western countries accountable for their historical crimes. That’s according to author and historian Dr. Gerald Horne who joined Sputnik’s The Critical Hour program as reports emerged that the ICJ plans to make a ruling on South Africa’s case Friday.
“There is a strong and distinct possibility that the International Court of Justice in the Hague in the Netherlands will issue what amounts to a cease-and-desist order, i.e., an injunction… demanding that Israel’s forces stop its genocidal campaign against Palestinians in Gaza,” said Horne.
“If that order is issued it will then go to the Security Council, where it will likely face a veto from Israel's protector – speaking of the United States of America,” explained the University of Houston professor. “But it does not necessarily stop there because with some maneuvering, it's possible that ICJ opinion can be forwarded to the General Assembly of the United Nations, that is to say, 190-plus member states.”
Horne claimed a ruling in favor of an emergency injunction against Israel would be a significant development, as the decision could form the basis for increased pressure and even sanctions on the country. The verdict would also be a setback for the United States which has repeatedly defended Israel’s conduct in Gaza while serving as its ally’s chief supplier of military aid.
The author claimed the United States is already flexing its diplomatic muscle to discredit South Africa.
“Washington also, it seems to me, is trying to crack down on South Africa,” said Horne. “That is the import of the present tour of Africa by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Recall that he has visited Nigeria, the continent's largest economy and most populous state.”
Horne said Nigeria has historically remained more neutral on the Palestinian question, perhaps owing to anti-Islamic sentiment. He claimed Blinken’s visits to countries like Nigeria and Angola were designed to isolate South Africa, noting the United States’ long history of interference across the continent. The United States worked with apartheid South Africa in the 1970s in an attempt to prevent anticolonial forces from coming to power in Angola.
Recently Namibia’s President Hage Geingob made headlines when he slammed Germany’s intervention in the ICJ on behalf of Israel. The president noted Berlin has repeatedly refused to provide reparations to Namibia for their genocide of the Namaqua and Herero people in the early twentieth century.
Host Garland Nixon asked if the development illustrates the potential for countries of the Global South to band together and file claims in the ICJ seeking justice for the historical abuses of European colonial powers.
“I think that, believe it or not, a key answer or a critical answer to that question will be emerging from North America,” responded Horne. “Not only with regard to Black Americans filing what amounts to a front of the court brief with the ICJ in support of the South African claims against Israel, on the basis that certainly the genocide that has been perpetrated against Black people gives credence to the idea that the United States and London have aided and abetted genocide in historic Palestine. But also, the numerous Native American groupings.”
Horne expressed optimism that South Africa might in turn side with African American groups to file a claim against the United States for carrying out a “genocide against Black Americans.” He recalled that the idea was suggested by American civil rights activist Paul Robeson in 1950.
Robeson was persecuted by the US government for his socialist politics and outspoken defense of the Soviet Union. The legendary musician was one of a number of civil rights advocates targeted by US intelligence, including Malcolm X and Fred Hampton, who was assassinated on orders from the FBI. US agencies also famously surveilled Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., monitoring his correspondence and sending him anonymous threats.
In 1999, a jury found that the US federal government was likely involved in a conspiracy to assassinate the consequential civil rights leader.