Vox Sentences - Justice for Gaza?

Good afternoon!

A programming note: This is the final issue of Sentences. We’ll be taking a break next week, and starting February 5, Vox’s new daily newsletter will be in your inbox every Monday through Friday!

Here’s what’s on tap today: 

UP FIRST: United Nations court orders urgent measures in Gaza

CATCH UP: Republicans’ border deal falls apart

—Nicole Narea, senior reporter

UN court orders urgent measures in Gaza

Michel Porro/Getty Images

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations’s top court, ordered Israel to take action to prevent genocide against Palestinians in Gaza and allow more aid to reach them. Though the ruling can’t realistically be enforced, it adds to mounting international pressure on Israel as the death toll from its military campaign climbs above 26,000.

The decision is the first to emerge from an ongoing case South Africa brought against Israel, accusing the Middle Eastern country of committing genocide as it wages its war in Gaza. Israel had asked the court to dismiss South Africa’s allegations, but the court refused to do so. 

The ICJ didn’t decide whether Israel is committing genocide — that will come later. It only had to evaluate whether there was a plausible basis for the preliminary measures sought by South Africa to protect the rights of Palestinians under international law on genocide. In other words, whether Israel could plausibly be committing genocide or imminently doing so, and whether (as South Africa requested) Israel should be ordered to immediately stop its campaign. 

Based on the mass killing and suffering among Palestinians in Gaza and dehumanizing language coming from Israeli officials, the court decided to move ahead with some of those preliminary measures, though it refused to order a ceasefire. The ruling states that the “catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is at serious risk of deteriorating further before the court renders its final judgment,” which could be years away. 

Here are more details on the decision:

• Israel must take preventative action: The court ordered Israel to “ensure with immediate effect” that its forces don’t violate provisions of the Genocide Convention that prohibit  (1) killing or inflicting serious harm on Palestinians as a distinct group, (2) intentionally making living conditions so dire as to destroy the group in whole or in part, and (3) preventing births among Palestinians.
• Israel must punish incitement to genocide: The court said Israel had to follow international law in responding to any calls for genocide. 
• Israel must let in more aid: Israeli protesters have tried to prevent aid convoys from entering Gaza until all the Israeli hostages are freed. The UN humanitarian chief recently warned that Gaza has become “uninhabitable,” with dire shortages of food, water, and basic medical supplies as well as the spread of infectious disease.
• Israel has to report back on its actions: The court asked Israel to come back in one month with a report on the actions it has taken in response to the ruling.

For more, read my colleague Ellen Ioanes’s analysis.

Trump mucks up the Senate immigration deal

NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images

Congressional Republicans were on the cusp of winning large concessions on border security measures in exchange for aid for Ukraine. President Joe Biden, looking to shore up goodwill on immigration ahead of the 2024 election, was prepared to sign off on the plan. But former President Donald Trump’s meddling has likely doomed the deal.

Trump has reportedly been calling Senate Republicans asking them not to support the negotiations so that he can keep the border a live issue ahead of the November election and use it against Biden. Remember that Trump’s ultra-right immigration platform was arguably what catapulted him to office in 2016. 

“What is currently being worked on in the Senate will be meaningless in terms of Border Security and Closure,” Trump said in a statement Thursday.

As my colleague Andrew Prokop writes, “Trump wants there to be chaos at the border while Biden is president, because he thinks such chaos will help defeat the incumbent.” Republicans don’t want to cross Trump, who has proved the enduring leader of the party even amid his legal troubles. So they will likely fall in line. 

Here’s what’s been discussed and the reaction among Republicans:

• The deal contemplates sweeping changes at the border: Lawmakers are reportedly discussing expanding legal authorities and creating new ones to rapidly expel migrants, raising the bar for migrants to pass asylum screenings, as well as changes to US parole programs that shield certain migrants from deportation. 
• It marks a huge paradigm shift for Democrats: As I’ve previously written, Biden is considering changes to the immigration system that are Trumpian in nature, putting him at odds with the left of his party and breaking with the longtime Democratic status quo. 
• Some Republicans are frustrated: Some Republicans are groaning because this may be their best chance to achieve their priorities on the border — especially if elections don’t go their way in the fall. 

• Trump courtroom drama: Trump reportedly walked out of a New York courtroom in a huff during the damages trial in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case against him when her lawyer accused him of thinking the “rules don’t apply to him.” [NBC]
• What went wrong in Japan’s moon landing: The spacecraft achieved its goal of a “pinpoint” landing within 100 meters of its target but landed at an angle that made its solar panels unable to generate electricity. [New York Times]
• Remote worker layoffs: New research suggests that remote workers are disproportionately affected when it comes to layoffs. [Wall Street Journal]

How the internet built a conspiracy theory around a new spy flick, a debut novel, and Taylor Swift

Why I’m glad my newborn received a false positive test for a rare genetic disorder

Why would anyone be against life-saving malaria bednets?

What we’re fighting about when we fight about Barbie

As always, we want to know what you think. We recently changed the format of this newsletter. Any questions, comments, or ideas? Write us at newsletter@vox.com or just reply to this email. 

This email was sent to you. Manage your email preferences or unsubscribe. If you value Vox’s unique explanatory journalism, support our work with a one-time or recurring contribution.

View our Privacy Notice and our Terms of Service.

Vox Media, 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Floor 12, Washington, DC 20036.
Copyright © 2024. All rights reserved.