Robert Abela stopped short of labelling the Gaza war as genocide by Israel, saying he will leave it up to people to come to their own conclusions.

“Is it genocide? You have more than 20,000 innocent people who lost their lives. I will leave it up to people to arrive at that conclusion on whether this is genocide," he said.

"I am being factual. More than 20,000 people lost their lives because many leaders around Europe and the world did not dare to insist on a permanent ceasefire because they were concerned about trampling on toes,” he said. 

He was asked whether the Maltese government would support South Africa's case accusing Israel of genocide. In an interview with Times of Malta earlier this week, Labour MEP Alex Agius Saliba called on the government to support South Africa’s case.

Abela said the government was closely following developments and proceedings in the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

“Our position was always consistent from the very beginning,” Abela said as he explained how Malta from the outset condemned the actions by Hamas on October 7 that killed 1,140 people and led to the Israeli bombing.

“We condemned Hamas. We also said that Israel has the right to defend itself within the parameters of humanitarian and international laws but no self-defence can result in retaliation where over 20,000 people, mostly innocent women and children, lost their lives because of this right to self-defence. We condemned that and will stick to that position,” Abela said.

He added that had world leaders taken the position that Malta took, “in all probability, the atrocities we saw happening would not have happened”.

South Africa launched an emergency case at the International Court of Justice, arguing last week that Israel stands in breach of the UN Genocide Convention signed in 1948 in the wake of the Holocaust.

France this week said it does not back the case, saying that accusing Israel of genocide "crosses the moral threshold". Germany has "decisively and expressly" rejected South Africa's accusations. 

Most other EU countries have remained silent on the issue. 

At least 24,285 Palestinians, about 70 per cent of them women, children, and adolescents, have been killed, according to the Hamas government.

In the UN Security Council, Malta successfully tabled a resolution calling for urgent and extended humanitarian pauses and corridors through the Gaza Strip for the transport of essential items.

It also supported Resolution 2720, which called on all parties to 'allow, facilitate and enable' the immediate, safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance directly to the Palestinian civilian population throughout the Gaza Strip.