Israeli Lawyers Lose Paper Several Times During Defense Arguments at ICJ

The Hague, MINA – The British lawyer who defended Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Professor Malcolm Shaw KC, lost his argument papers several times in his defense after “someone” messed up his papers.

The international law professor lost his position several times in a statement that attempted to refute accusations of genocide against Israel carried out by South Africa over the ongoing Israeli military operation in Gaza on Friday.

As his argument continued, Shaw turned the page and discovered that the pages of the paper were out of order. ITE media reported.

“Excuse me,” he said. “I lost a page.”

Then, when the same thing happened again, he stopped again.

“Well, someone shuffled my letters,” Shaw said, rushing to rephrase his statement on the stand.

What followed was a prolonged awkward silence as Israel’s defense team appeared to try to direct the lawyer through a copy of the statement while everyone else in the courtroom waited.

Shaw’s opening arguments focused on several key points regarding the dispute between South Africa and Israel. He argued that if South Africa engaged in dialogue, they might realize that there was no dispute that required court intervention.

Regarding the genocide accusation, Shaw argued that there was insufficient evidence to prove Israel’s genocidal intent against Palestinians.

Shaw further contextualizes Israel’s actions in Gaza, particularly in response to the Hamas attack on October 7. He emphasized that while this does not justify violations of international law, it supports Israel’s right to defend itself in accordance with humanitarian law.

South Africa presented its case with a first hearing on Thursday, accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and Israel presented its defense on Friday. (T/RE1/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)