An Israeli APC maneuvers near the Gaza Strip border, in southern Israel, Dec 29, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

THE HAGUE/JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH/SANAA – South Africa filed a case on Friday in the International Court of Justice against Israel for its "genocidal" acts in Gaza.

The case claims "alleged violations by Israel of its obligations under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the 'Genocide Convention') in relation to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip," according to an ICJ press release.

The development came the same day as the Israel Defense Forces announced the start of its military operations in southern Gaza's Khirbat Ikhza'a region from where Hamas infiltrated and raided Kibbutz Nir Oz community in a surprise attack on Israel on Oct 7 resulting in casualties and the abduction of civilians to Gaza.

In its application to the UN court, South Africa said that "acts and omissions by Israel ... are genocidal in character, as they are committed with the requisite specific intent ... to destroy Palestinians in Gaza as a part of the broader Palestinian national, racial and ethnical group."

South Africa also said that "the conduct of Israel – through its State organs, State agents, and other persons and entities acting on its instructions or under its direction, control or influence -- in relation to Palestinians in Gaza, is in violation of its obligations under the Genocide Convention."

READ MORE: Health Ministry: Palestinian death toll in Gaza tops 21,000

"Israel, since 7 October 2023 in particular, has failed to prevent genocide and has failed to prosecute the direct and public incitement to genocide" and that "Israel has engaged in, is engaging in and risks further engaging in genocidal acts against the Palestinian people in Gaza," said the South African application.

South Africa urged the UN court to take "provisional measures" to "protect against further, severe and irreparable harm to the rights of the Palestinian people under the Genocide Convention."

It also called on the ICJ for measures "to ensure Israel's compliance with its obligations under the Genocide Convention not to engage in genocide, and to prevent and to punish genocide."

The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. It was established by the UN Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in April 1946. 

A building destroyed during the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Nov 22, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

IDF operation in southern Gaza

The Israeli soldiers are working to gain operational control of the Khirbat Ikhza'a area from where Hamas launched its surprise attack on Israel’s Kibbutz Nir Oz community on Oct 7.

In a statement, the IDF said the soldiers in the area "have eliminated terrorists and struck many significant targets, including tunnel shafts, a tunnel route, and anti-tank missile launch posts”.

Numerous tunnel shafts have been discovered, along with substantial quantities of weapons, including AK-47s, rifles, grenades, mines, launchers, and mortars, the statement added.

The combat engineering soldiers of the brigade's combat team also demolished infrastructure located in the residences of the Hamas militants who participated in the Oct 7 attack, according to the statement.

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In a separate statement the same day, the IDF reported identifying a number of launches from Lebanon toward Israel, two of which crossed into Israeli territory. In response, IDF artillery targeted the origin of the launches.

Palestinian killed after ‘car-ramming attack’

Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian youth on Friday after he allegedly rammed his car into a group of Israelis near a military site in the West Bank, Palestinian and Israeli officials said.

The Israeli military said in a statement that "a vehicular attack occurred near a military site" in the West Bank, and that troops in the area "responded with fire" and "neutralized" the assailant.

Israeli media outlets reported that the incident resulted in injuries of four Israelis with varying degrees of severity.

Palestinian sources said Israeli forces also "violently attacked" several journalists who were covering the incident, injuring some of them and damaging their equipment, and declared the nearby area a closed military zone.

The attack came a day after another Palestinian was killed by Israeli fire at a checkpoint in the central West Bank city of Bethlehem. The Israeli military said he stabbed and wounded a security guard and a female soldier before being shot dead.

READ MORE: Israeli PM inspects north Gaza, vows to continue fight

According to Palestinian statistics, 315 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in the West Bank since the outbreak of the conflict in Gaza on Oct 7. 

Palestinians flee to the southern Gaza Strip, on the outskirts of Gaza City, during the ongoing Israeli bombardment on Nov 22, 2023. (PHOTO / AP)

Houthis renew warning

Yemen's Houthi rebels issued a new warning to the United States on Friday, cautioning against any military escalation and pledging to continue attacks on "Israel-related" commercial ships in the Red Sea.

Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea, in a statement broadcast on the rebel-run al-Masirah TV, affirmed the group's commitment to counter "any potential aggression on Yemen”.

Sarea also sent a warning to nations considering participation in the US-led coalition aimed at protecting the ships.

In recent weeks, the rebel group has targeted "Israel-related" cargo vessels in the southern Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, citing solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

On Nov 19, the Houthis hijacked a cargo ship, the Galaxy Leader, in the Red Sea and took it and its crew to Hodeidah port.

ALSO READ: WHO voices concern about worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza

The group said they would stop attacks on ships if food and medicine aid were allowed into the Gaza Strip. Last week, the US announced a multinational maritime coalition to secure the ships passing through the Red Sea after a series of Houthi attacks.

The rebels control much of northern Yemen, including the strategic Red Sea port city of Hodeidah, since they ousted the Yemeni government from the capital Sanaa.