South Africa will ask the top UN court to order an immediate halt to Israel’s incursion in Rafah, describing it as a “genocidal” operation threatening the “very survival of Palestinians”, AFP reports.

Top lawyers for Pretoria will kick off two days of hearings at the Peace Palace, home of the International Court of Justice, imploring judges to order a ceasefire throughout Gaza.

Israel will respond on Friday. It has previously highlighted its “unwavering” commitment to upholding international law and described South Africa’s case as “wholly unfounded” and “morally repugnant”.

In a ruling that made headlines around the world, the ICJ in January ordered Israel to do everything in its power to prevent genocidal acts and enable humanitarian aid to Gaza.

But the court stopped short of ordering a ceasefire and South Africa’s argument is that the situation on the ground — notably the Rafah operation — requires fresh ICJ action.

“As the overwhelming evidence demonstrates, the very manner in which Israel is pursuing its military operations in Rafah, and elsewhere in Gaza, is itself genocidal,” South Africa said in its submission.“It must be ordered to stop.”

The orders of the ICJ, which rules in disputes between states, are legally binding but it has little means to enforce them. It has ordered Russia to halt its invasion of Ukraine, to no avail.