On Monday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague began hearing a genocide case on the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land.
According to Middle East Eye, “separate to the more well-publicised genocide case brought by South Africa on Israel’s attack on the Gaza Strip, the UN’s highest court will hear from 52 countries and three international organisations on the legal consequences of Israel’s decades-long occupation. The hearings will contribute to an advisory opinion, an ICJ instrument that has no binding force but carries significant legal and moral authority.
UN member states must bring the illegal israeli occupation of Palestine to an immediate end, with no aid, no assistance, no money & no arms pic.twitter.com/HmuT9zhoUx
— Sarah Wilkinson (@swilkinsonbc) February 19, 2024
“The number of states participating in the oral proceedings is the highest in any case since the ICJ’s establishment in 1945.
“Israel has been occupying what is recognised under international law as Palestinian land since the 1967 war. East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza all fall under this category, and the separate legal systems, construction of settlements and acts of violence meted out against Palestinian residents are all key factors that will be considered in the hearings.
“The current case goes back to December 2022 when the UN General Assembly passed a resolution calling on the ICJ to give an advisory opinion on Israel’s 57-year occupation of Palestinian territories.
“The assembly voted 87 to 26 with 53 abstentions in favour of the resolution.
“The UN General Assembly asked the court for an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of Israel’s “occupation, settlement and annexation … including measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, and from its adoption of related discriminatory legislation and measures.
“The UN resolution also asked the ICJ to advise on how those policies and practices “affect the legal status of the occupation” and what legal consequences arise for all countries and the UN from this status.
“The hearings will be held until 26 February. After that, the judges are expected to take several months to deliberate before issuing an advisory opinion.”
POWERFUL AND EMOTIONAL MOMENT AT THE ICJ
AS THE FOREIGN MINISTER CHOKED UP AND HELD BACK TEARS
“What does International Law mean for Palestinians?”
“It is incredibly difficult to be Palestinian today..”pic.twitter.com/pld44nrsMW
— Sulaiman Ahmed (@ShaykhSulaiman) February 19, 2024
