South Africa asks ICJ to probe Israel’s alleged noncompliance with Gaza provisional measures

South Africa said Friday that it has formally submitted a dossier to the International Court of Justice accusing Israel of failing to comply with the court’s binding provisional measures in the Gaza genocide case, marking a procedural escalation in the long-running dispute.

In an Aug. 28 statement, South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation said the dossier was filed on Aug. 25 under Article 11 of the ICJ’s resolution on internal judicial practice. South Africa said that step is meant to place its allegations before the ad hoc committee of judges responsible for monitoring implementation of provisional measures and recommending possible options to the court.

“On 25 August 2026, South Africa submitted a substantial dossier of information to the ICJ, in order to assist the Committee of Judges responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Provisional Measures and recommending potential options for the Court,” the department said. It added: “Regrettably, Israel has not complied with the Orders.”

As part of that claim, South Africa said its submission cites casualty figures showing the scale of harm in Gaza. “As of August 2026, at least 73 407 Palestinians have been killed and 174 335 injured in Gaza since 7 October 2023: over 10% of the Palestinian population in Gaza,” the department said. Those figures come from Gaza health authorities and are reflected in U.N. humanitarian reporting with attribution to the Gaza Ministry of Health; they are not presented in the available research as independently verified forensic counts.

The filing is significant because it seeks to move South Africa’s allegations into the ICJ’s compliance-monitoring track for interim orders already issued in the case. Article 11 created a mechanism for a three-judge ad hoc committee to help monitor whether parties are implementing provisional measures while the broader case continues.

South Africa originally brought the case against Israel at the ICJ, the United Nations’ top court for disputes between states, on Dec. 29, 2023 under the Genocide Convention. The case accuses Israel of violating that treaty in Gaza. The ICJ has not ruled on the merits of those claims.

It has, however, issued three sets of provisional measures — legally binding interim orders — on Jan. 26, 2024, March 28, 2024, and May 24, 2024. Those are the orders South Africa now says Israel has not followed.

In its public summary, South Africa said the dossier also alleges restrictions on humanitarian access and other abuses in Gaza. The statement presented those claims as part of South Africa’s submission to the court, not as findings by the ICJ.

The court’s provisional measures are binding under international law, though the ICJ does not have its own enforcement arm. South Africa’s latest filing does not resolve the underlying genocide case, but it formally asks the court’s monitoring mechanism to examine what Pretoria says is ongoing non-compliance.

The broader case remains in the written-pleadings stage. According to South African government material, Israel filed its written response on March 12, 2026. South Africa’s next written reply is due in November 2027.

That means the core dispute over whether Israel has violated the Genocide Convention is still far from a final ruling. But South Africa’s latest move opens a separate, more immediate front before the court: whether Israel is complying with interim orders the ICJ has already made while the case proceeds.