In that time, the death toll among Palestinians living in Gaza has risen to nearly 24,000 as Israel unleashed more than 65,000 tonnes of bombs on the besieged enclave and its population of 2.3 million people trapped in less than 400sq kilometres.

Israel’s assault on Gaza began on October 7, in response to an attack by armed fighters from the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas and other Palestinian groups. Some 1,140 people died during the attack and about 240 were taken into Gaza as captives.

In retaliation, Israel began a vicious bombing campaign and tightened what was already a crushing siege that Gaza has been under since 2007.

“We are fighting human animals,” Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said on October 9, announcing that food, water, fuel, medicines, everything, would not be permitted into Gaza.

Since then, defying condemnations and pleas from international organisations and rights groups, Israel has continued an indiscriminate campaign that has sown terror among the people in Gaza, killed entire multi-generation families, and destroyed huge swaths of urban and rural lands.

Israel now stands accused by South Africa of carrying out genocide in Gaza at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague in the Netherlands.

Speaking on Saturday, after presentations by both sides were done at the ICJ, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “No one will stop us, not The Hague, not the axis of evil and not anyone else.” His “axis” comment referred to Iran and its allied groups.

Alternating between claims that this level of killing and destruction is somehow justified in the name of self-defence and statements that it is doing its utmost to avoid civilian casualties, Israel has often strayed far from its statements about the different aspects of this war on Gaza.