Sen. Elizabeth Warren claims ICJ has 'ample evidence' to convict Israel of 'genocide' in Gaza

US defense secretary says the opposite

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Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic senator representing the state of Massachusetts, said on Friday that she believes the International Court of Justice in The Hague will convict the State of Israel of having committed genocide during its invasion of Gaza.

In January, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) began to hear the case brought by the South African government that accused Israel of perpetrating a genocide in the Gaza Strip.

Representatives from many nations have subsequently testified before the court, which, despite lacking means of enforcement, holds considerable influence over international relations as one of the six principal organs of the United Nations.

While not insisting on the use of the term “genocide” when describing Israel’s actions, Warren said in a Q&A that “there's going to be a long and involved debate over what constitutes genocide, when you ask a legal question. For me, it is far more important to say what Israel is doing is wrong. And it is wrong. It is wrong to starve children within a civilian population in order to try to bend to your will, it is wrong to drop 2000-pound bombs, in densely populated civilian areas.”

When pressed on the issue, however, Warren stated the following: "If you want to do it as an application of law, I believe that they’ll find that it is genocide. And they have ample evidence to do so."

The senator did not provide details as to her views on the appropriate criteria for a conviction of genocide, or how Israel may have met such criteria.

In contrast to Warren, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin outright denied that Israel was committing genocide.

“From the very beginning we are committed to help assist Israel in defending its territory and its people by providing security assistance,” the Biden-appointee told the Senate Committee on Armed Services on Tuesday.

Nevertheless, the secretary of defense stated that while “Hamas is responsible for the start of this war,” Israel’s response has resulted in “far too many civilian casualties.”

The contrasting views of Warren and Austin reflect a divide within the Democratic Party, with many Democrats arguing that the Biden administration has been far too supportive of Israel.

Biden’s stance on Israel is reportedly jeopardizing his chances at re-election. One example of this phenomenon can be found in the significant drop in support for Biden among Muslim Democrats in the swing state of Michigan since the start of the war.

As of November, “about two-thirds of Arab and Muslim Democrats said they now think they will vote to replace Biden, and three-quarters said they are willing to vote for a third-party candidate,” according to NBC News.