PM Rutte denies obstructing Israel disclosures; ICJ to issue first genocide ruling today

Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte denies that his Ministry interfered at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to hide or change unwelcome information about Israel. “That simply did not happen,” the outgoing government leader said in a letter to parliament on Thursday. On Friday, the International Court of Justice in The Hague will make an interim ruling on the genocide case South Africa filed against Israel over its incessant bombings of the Gaza Strip in the war against Hamas.

Last week, NRC reported that Rutte’s Ministry of General Affairs asked the Legal Affairs Directorate at Foreign Affairs: “What can we say so that it appears as if Israel is not committing war crimes.” According to Rutte, there is a lot of discussion between Ministries about advice on how to weigh in. “That is normal.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs previously denied that General Affairs had tried to sweep matters under the rug. The criticism to that effect came from a letter written by about 20 anonymous civil servants. The piece was used in an appeal by three civil society organizations against the Dutch State to stop the delivery of F-35 parts to Israel.

The officials also said that Rutte had interfered at the last minute to prevent the Netherlands from voting in favor of a UN resolution in December that called for “creating the conditions for a long-term cessation of hostilities” in the Gaza Strip.

The Prime Minister did not say who ultimately decided on the vote. That would affect the unity of Cabinet policy, according to Rutte. According to the anonymous officials, Minister Hanke Bruins Slot (Foreign Affairs) actually wanted to support the resolution. “I don’t even have the position to overrule anyone,” Rutte said.

He added that the anonymous civil servants shouldn’t be judged too harshly. The Prime Minister thinks the practice is a shame, but “let’s be a little more relaxed about it.” According to him, there is “no problem” at Foreign Affairs with officials leaking information, and there is room in the department to have a different opinion.

The war in Gaza is causing a lot of discussion within, among others, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A few hundred civil servants also signed a letter last year stating that they believe the government is siding too much with Israel in the conflict. Officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have already demonstrated six times against the Cabinet’s attitude.

Genocide ruling

The International Court of Justice in The Hague will rule on emergency measures against the war in Gaza on Friday in the genocide case South Africa filed against Israel. Whether the court considers Israel’s actions genocide will likely only become clear in years to come. But it could order a stop to the fighting on Friday.

At the end of last year, South Africa filed a case with the International Court of Justice for violations of the Genocide Convention. If the court finds Israel guilty of this, it would be a particularly severe conviction. That ruling won’t be made today. Such cases typically take years. Today’s ruling only concerns “provisional measures.”

The court could order Israel to stop the fighting. Such a ruling cannot be appealed against and is legally binding. But as the court cannot enforce the ruling, it would likely remain without consequences. Israel has already said that it intends to keep its war going.

Since October 7th, Israel has killed over 25,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including over 10,000 children. The Palestinian Ministry of Health announced that the death toll reached 25,105 on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported. The war was sparked by Hamas attacks on Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and taking around 200 hostages.

The International Court of Justice is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. All 193 countries that are members of the UN can file a case there. In addition to the court’s 15 judges, two judges from the two countries involved will also join: Dikgang Moseneke from South Africa and Aharon Barak from Israel.

The court’s seat is in the Peace Palace in The Hague. Demonstrations are planned there on Friday, both by supporters and opponents of the Israeli war. There were also demonstrations and counter-demonstrations at the hearings two weeks ago.