West Jerusalem is making efforts to pressure South Africa into dropping its claim at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Israel has begun lobbying the US Congress to exert pressure on South Africa regarding the Gaza genocide case currently before the ICJ. Pretoria initiated the case against West Jerusalem last year, accusing the Israel Defense Forces of committing genocide in the Palestinian enclave.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry has directed diplomats to collaborate with lawmakers and Jewish organizations to pressure South Africa to change its stance towards Israel. They are also pushing for bills targeting South Africa on both state and federal levels. The hope is that these efforts will influence South Africa’s decision ahead of the October 28 deadline set by the ICJ.
Israel sees an opportunity due to the recent political changes in South Africa and hopes to sway the new coalition government. Despite potential obstacles, Israel remains steadfast in seeking South Africa’s withdrawal from the case. The Israeli Foreign Ministry refrained from commenting on the matter.