Achi news desk-
Nicaragua argues that by giving political, financial and military support to Israel and by defunding the United Nations aid agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, “Germany is facilitating the commission of genocide and, in any case failed in its obligation to do everything possible to prevent the commission of genocide”.
Professor Tams is Professor of International Law at the University of Glasgow and founding director of the Glasgow Center for International Law and Security (GCILS).
At the University of Glasgow, he directs the Erasmus Mundus Master in International Law for Security, Peace and Global Development (ILGSPD) and the Glasgow-Leuphana dual degree program in international economic law.
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In addition to his academic work, Professor Tams, who studied and worked in Germany before coming to Scotland in 2008, regularly advises States and other actors in international disputes.
While the case brought by Nicaragua focuses on Germany, it indirectly takes aim at Israel’s military operation in Gaza following the deadly October 7 attacks when Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people.
Germany has strongly rejected the case brought by Nicaragua.
Speaking at the ICJ on Tuesday, Pro Tam told the panel of 16 judges: “The minute we look carefully, Nicaragua’s accusations fall apart.”
On Monday, Nicaragua urged judges to order the suspension of German military aid to Israel, arguing that Berlin’s support enables acts of genocide and violations of international humanitarian law in Gaza.
The head of Germany’s legal team, Tania von Uslar-Gleichen, said Nicaragua’s claims “have no basis in fact or law.” They rely on an assessment of behavior by Israel, not a party in this case”.
Preliminary hearings on Monday and Tuesday focus entirely on Nicaragua’s request for so-called temporary measures, including a court order for Berlin to freeze military and other aid to Israel and restore funding to the United Nations aid agency United in Gaza.
Mr Tams said that since October Germany has licensed four munitions exports to Israel alone, “three of which are related to test or practice equipment”.
Showing judges a photo of German aid being dropped over Gaza, Mr Tams added that Berlin continued to provide humanitarian support to Palestinians “every day under very difficult conditions, engaging constructively with international partners”.
The Nicaragua case is the latest legal attempt to rein in Israel’s offensive by a country with historic ties to the Palestinian people, after South Africa accused Israel of genocide in the same court late last year.
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It also comes against a backdrop of growing calls for Israel’s allies to stop supplying arms to the country – and as some supporters, including Germany, become more critical of the war.
At Monday’s hearings, Nicaragua’s ambassador to the Netherlands, Carlos Jose Arguello Gomez, accused Germany of “failing to honor its own obligation to prevent genocide or to ensure respect for international humanitarian law”.
However, another German lawyer, Samuel Wordsworth, argued that the court could not rule that Germany was in breach of the obligation to prevent genocide because its judges had not ruled that Israel was in breach of the Genocide Convention .
In a preliminary phase of the case brought late last year by South Africa, the UN court has said it is “plausible” that Israel’s actions in Gaza could amount to a breach of the convention.
“How can it be said that there is a failure to ensure respect for a third state, if the failure on the part of that third state to respect has not been established in the first place?” said Mr Wordsworth.
The court will probably take weeks to make its preliminary decision, and the Nicaragua case will probably drag on for years.
Israel strongly denies that its attack amounts to acts of genocide, saying it is acting in self-defence after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people.
Since then, more than 33,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory’s Ministry of Health. His toll does not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but has said the majority of the dead are women and children.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Germany is second only to the United States in supplying weapons to Israel — but it would be more difficult, if not impossible, for the United States to be brought before the court because Washington does not recognize the ICJ’s power to compel countries to appear before it.
The United States has also not signed a protocol to the Genocide Convention that allows countries to bring disputes to court.
