ICJ vs. ICC: Two Courts in The Hague, Often Confused

Headlines often say "the world court" or "the UN court" ruled against Israel. Two different courts are involved, with different powers and different relationships to the United Nations.

• South Africa filed in December 2023. In January 2024 the court ordered provisional measures — interim orders while a case proceeds. It found Palestinians had plausible rights to protection under the Genocide Convention; its then-president later explained it did not find genocide plausible (fact check).
• It did not order Israel to stop fighting, though in May 2024 it ordered a halt to the Rafah offensive insofar as it could bring about the group's destruction.
• Israel filed its response in March 2026, contesting jurisdiction. South Africa's reply is due November 2027 and Israel's rejoinder May 2029. No ruling on whether genocide occurred has been made.
• Separately, the ICJ gave non-binding advisory opinions in July 2024 (Israel's occupation is unlawful) and October 2025 (Israel must facilitate UN aid, including UNRWA). Israel rejected both.

• On November 21, 2024, ICC judges issued warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, alleging the war crime of starvation as a method of warfare and crimes against humanity. A warrant was also issued for Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif.
• A warrant means judges found "reasonable grounds to believe" — a charge, not a conviction. Calling Netanyahu a "convicted war criminal" is false.
• Israel is not an ICC member and disputes the court's jurisdiction. In April 2025 the ICC's Appeals Chamber ruled the lower court had wrongly dismissed that challenge as premature and must hear it; the warrants stay in force meanwhile.
• The prosecutor who sought the warrants, Karim Khan, was removed from office by ICC member states in July 2026 over sexual misconduct (he denies it). Only the judges can withdraw a warrant, and as of October 2026 they have not.
• The ICC has no police; it depends on member states. Several have said they would not arrest Netanyahu, and the United States, not a member, has sanctioned ICC officials.

We cite both courts — and other UN bodies — as sources for what they ruled, ordered or alleged, which is a matter of record. We do not treat an allegation, a provisional order or an advisory opinion as proof that the underlying facts are true. Whether each body lives up to its own claim of impartiality is examined, with evidence on both sides, here:

• International Court of Justice
• International Criminal Court
• UN Human Rights Council
• UNRWA

For the ICC's record on other leaders (Putin, Xi, Assad, Iran's leadership), see The ICC and Selective Enforcement.