Vusimuzi Madonsela, the South African ambassador to the Netherlands, right, with Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s justice minister, at the International Court of Justice on 11 January. Photograph: Hollandse Hoogte

NNA News - South Africa has submitted a new dossier to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing Israel of failing to comply with three binding orders intended to protect Palestinians in Gaza.

In a statement released on Friday, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) announced that its legal team had filed the dossier on Tuesday, 25 August. According to the press release, the submission is intended “to assist the Committee of Judges responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Provisional Measures”. It includes “recommendations for potential options for the Court”.

Pretoria explained that the submission was made under Article 11 of the ICJ’s internal judicial rules. Under this article, the committee “shall examine the information supplied by the parties in relation to provisional measures”. South Africa added that it “trusts in the Court’s continued and diligent exercise of its functions”.

The three orders stem from South Africa’s genocide case against Israel. In that case, the world’s top court in The Hague ruled that “there is a real and imminent risk of irreparable prejudice to the rights of Palestinians in Gaza to be protected from genocide”. In its latest filing, South Africa reported that Israel has killed at least 73,407 Palestinians in Gaza since 7 October 2023. A further 174,335 people have been injured. Together, the figures represent more than 10 percent of the enclave’s population. The filing further states that approximately 46,000 survivors are suffering from severe injuries related to the genocide. Among those affected are children who have undergone amputations, as well as individuals with traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators watch proceedings at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, on Jan. 11. Photographer: Peter Boer

The dossier also outlines the ongoing devastating effects on the Palestinian population, highlighting the severe impact on vulnerable children. The South African legal team further details that since the announcement of what it describes as a “so-called ceasefire”, the violence has continued. “On average, one Palestinian child has been killed every day by the Israeli military.”

In addition, it stresses that surviving Palestinians are “further traumatised and herded into an ever-shrinking sliver of territory and subjected to unbearable living conditions”. The report goes on to describe the worsening conditions faced by Palestinians, including “restricted access to water, healthcare, medicine, and other essential resources necessary for survival”.

South Africa maintains that the ICJ orders are binding on Israel. At the same time, it argues that the international community has an obligation under the Genocide Convention to prevent and punish genocide. "Regrettably, Israel has not complied with the orders," the department added. "South Africa continues to pursue all avenues available to it to seek Israel's full and immediate compliance with the court's orders."

The latest submission follows a series of dossiers and letters that South Africa has previously sent to the United Nations. It submitted public dossiers to the Security Council on 29 May 2024, 27 February 2025 and 8 September 2025. In addition, it sent dossiers regarding starvation to the United Nations General Assembly and the Economic and Social Council in October 2025, calling for urgent action under Article VIII of the Genocide Convention.

In its latest filing, South Africa alleges that Israel's military campaign has killed and injured tens of thousands of children and adults, displaced Palestinians and deprived them of basic services. It also alleges arbitrary detention and deportation, torture, sexual and gender-based violence, and other forms of ill-treatment in Israeli prisons and detention centres. In addition to these allegations, the dossier further claims that Israel has made efforts to cover up what it describes as "crimes". This includes "the killing of local journalists, restrictions on foreign journalists and preventing UN-mandated investigative bodies from entering Gaza."

Other signs and banners supporting Palestinians and condemning Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Photo: Reuters

The South African government further argues that Israel's failure to comply with the provisional measures has undermined their protective purpose. It therefore warns that such actions could result in further destruction of the Palestinian population. “The provisional measures were not only ordered to protect the rights of the Palestinian people under the Genocide Convention; they also safeguard the administration of justice and the legitimacy of the ICJ itself by ensuring that the rights the Court is called upon to vindicate are not destroyed before it renders its final decision.”

The department further emphasised that "the submission reaffirms South Africa's commitment to international law and multilateral institutions, including the UN's principal judicial organ."