Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza
Israel on Friday defended its attack on the south of Gaza against claims of genocide, telling the UN’s highest court that any state would do the same.
Denying a claim by South Africa that Rafah is the “endgame” of Gaza’s destruction, Israel said it entered the city to bring down a “military stronghold for Hamas”.
It told the International Court of Justice it wishes no harm to Palestinian civilians and that Hamas militants were responsible for the war's "suffering and pain".
In a 90-minute pleading, it said an order sought by South Africa for Israel to withdraw from Gaza would be an "extreme measure" denying it the right to self-defence.
"This war, like all wars, is tragic and terrible for Israelis and Palestinians and it has exacted a terrible human price. But it is not genocide," Israeli deputy attorney general Gilad Noam told judges. “Any state put in Israel’s difficult position would do the same."
On another day of legal arguments on the war:
· Israel said it "does not wish harm" to Palestinian civilians and the defeat of Hamas would mean they are "liberated" from the militants' rule
· It told the court its operations in Rafah were "specific, limited and localised" and aimed at Hamas networks posing a "significant threat" to Israel
· Judges were told that, contrary to South Africa's claims that Israel is withholding aid, it is making "remarkable efforts" to help civilians in Gaza
· Lawyers for Israel warned the court not to let South Africa and Hamas use international genocide law as a "sword rather than a shield"
· There was a disturbance in the Great Hall of Justice as someone in the courtroom shouted "liars" during Israel's closing argument.
Emergency ruling
The 17-member court headed by Lebanon's Nawaf Salam will now consider whether to grant South Africa's request for an interim order, a decision that typically takes a few weeks.
South Africa is seeking an explicit order for Israel to leave Gaza after a previous judgment in January gave more general instructions to prevent genocide.
It says it is acting in the name of Palestinians who have no independent representation at the UN, while Israel accuses South Africa of pro-Hamas bias.
Complaining of the short notice at which Thursday and Friday's hearings were called, Israel did not use all of its allotted two hours on Friday, with only two lawyers taking the floor.
Israel devoted part of its time to painting Rafah – often described as the "last refuge" of Palestinian civilians – as a military stronghold from which Hamas threatens Israel.
Lawyers gave documents to the court purporting to show rocket launch sites in Rafah and tunnel shafts that could be used to smuggle hostages or militants out of Gaza.
They said 278 rockets had been launched from Gaza in the past two weeks alone and hostages remained in captivity after Hamas's October 7 attack on Israel.
Mr Noam said Israel's moves in the south were not a "large-scale assault on Rafah but rather specific, limited and localised operations".
"Only by bringing down Hamas’s military stronghold in Rafah will Palestinians be liberated from the clench grip of the murderous terrorist regime and the road to peace and prosperity may finally be paved," he said.
Another of Israel's lawyers, Tamar Kaplan Tourgeman, said Hamas tactics were to blame for the suffering caused by the "tragic" conflict.
She said South Africa’s allegations of genocide fail to mention violence, hostage-taking and continuing rocket fire by Gaza’s ruling militants.
“We have hardly heard the word Hamas [from South Africa], even though it is Hamas that has brought about all the suffering and pain that we are witnessing,” she said.
South Africa neglected to mention that Israel is doing a “great deal” to expand aid routes, she said. Judges were told a Hamas attack on the Kerem Shalom border crossing was to blame for its recent closure.
"Israel continues to take extraordinary measures in order to minimise harm to Palestinian civilians in Gaza," Ms Tourgeman said.
'Sword not shield'
Israel also spent significant time arguing an order to call off its offensive in Gaza would be an abuse of the International Court of Justice.
It said the court should not be dragged down a "dangerous path" into the "micromanagement" of what Israel portrays as an armed conflict like any other.
Ordering a withdrawal would "turn the genocide convention into a sword rather than a shield", Mr Noam said.
It would also allow Hamas to reconstitute its forces, deny hostages hope of rescue and "destine the Palestinians in Gaza to perpetual war", the bench was told.
Ms Tourgeman accused South Africa of trying to "obtain military advantage for its ally" and said the order it seeks would "legitimise, protect and reward Hamas’s despicable method of warfare".
"It is one thing to require that Israel abide by its international legal obligations and protect civilians when exercising its inherent right to defend itself," she said. "But to deny Israel that inherent right is a different thing altogether. It is unthinkable."
'Endgame' claim
South Africa took the floor on Thursday to say it was returning to the ICJ because the war had entered a "new and horrific phase".
Having applied on May 10 for a ruling to halt Israel's operations in Rafah, it widened the request during Thursday's hearings to seek a withdrawal from all of Gaza.
British barrister Vaughan Lowe, representing South Africa, said the attack on Rafah was part of a wider goal of “wiping Gaza from the map”.
“It has become increasingly clear that Israel’s actions in Rafah are part of the endgame in which Gaza is utterly destroyed as an area capable of human habitation,” he said.
“It was Rafah that brought South Africa to the court, but it is all Palestinians … who need the protection from genocide that the court can order.”
South Africa said the previous rulings from the bench telling Israel to prevent genocide “have not succeeded” in protecting Palestinians in Gaza.
Only an order for a full retreat will “protect what is left of Palestinian life” in the enclave, South African lawyer Adila Hassim said.
The years Ramadan fell in May
MATCH INFO
Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Closing the loophole on sugary drinks
As The National reported last year, non-fizzy sugared drinks were not covered when the original tax was introduced in 2017. Sports drinks sold in supermarkets were found to contain, on average, 20 grams of sugar per 500ml bottle.
The non-fizzy drink AriZona Iced Tea contains 65 grams of sugar – about 16 teaspoons – per 680ml can. The average can costs about Dh6, which would rise to Dh9.
Drinks such as Starbucks Bottled Mocha Frappuccino contain 31g of sugar in 270ml, while Nescafe Mocha in a can contains 15.6g of sugar in a 240ml can.
Flavoured water, long-life fruit juice concentrates, pre-packaged sweetened coffee drinks fall under the ‘sweetened drink’ category
Not taxed:
Freshly squeezed fruit juices, ground coffee beans, tea leaves and pre-prepared flavoured milkshakes do not come under the ‘sweetened drink’ band.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'The Ice Road'
Director: Jonathan Hensleigh
Stars: Liam Neeson, Amber Midthunder, Laurence Fishburne
2/5
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
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The results of the first round are as follows:
Qais Saied (Independent): 18.4 per cent
Nabil Karoui (Qalb Tounes): 15.58 per cent
Abdelfattah Mourou (Ennahdha party): 12.88 per cent
Abdelkarim Zbidi (two-time defence minister backed by Nidaa Tounes party): 10.7 per cent
Youssef Chahed (former prime minister, leader of Long Live Tunisia): 7.3 per cent
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Starring: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Jamie Foxx, Lily James
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Leeds United 1 Manchester City 1
Leeds: Rodrigo (59')
Man City: Sterling (17')
Man of the Match: Rodrigo Moreno (Leeds)
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Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 3 (Kroos 4', Ramos 30', Marcelo 37')
Eibar 1 (Bigas 60')
'Morbius'
Director: Daniel Espinosa
Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
UNSC Elections 2022-23
Seats open:
- Two for Africa Group
- One for Asia-Pacific Group (traditionally Arab state or Tunisia)
- One for Latin America and Caribbean Group
- One for Eastern Europe Group
Countries so far running:
Panipat
Director Ashutosh Gowariker
Produced Ashutosh Gowariker, Rohit Shelatkar, Reliance Entertainment
Cast Arjun Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Kriti Sanon, Mohnish Behl, Padmini Kolhapure, Zeenat Aman
Rating 3 /5 stars
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
