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Husic deflects questions on whether ICJ case against Israel has merit
Q: Does South Africa's case before the international court of justice, accusing Israel of genocide, have merit?
It's not up to me as an individual cabinet minister to make reflections on another country's actions.
We are focused on a number of things, not the least of which joining the international community in pressing for a ceasefire and seeing longer term peace. I think that this is the big thing, long term, that needs to emerge.
I might leave those specific more detailed questions to the foreign minister, if you don't mind.
One of the great things about being a cabinet minister is that I can get to work on some really big issues like the one that is we talked about before, but I don't necessarily have the liberty as an individual citizen, when you've got cabinet, the sort of cabinet frameworks. So again, I appreciate the question, but I might, if I may, delicately sidestep that.
There have been concerns for a while. We've got so many people in desperate need in Gaza that we do need to provide that type of assistance and emphasis on the commitment to international humanitarian law. Specifically the protection of innocent lives.
People are going to have, as we have seen through the course of this conflict and the way it's been discussed, you will get disparate and different views all the time. But the main thing is that ... presence of the foreign minister and the main things that Penny Wong is focused on are really important longer term.
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