The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruled that Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territory is unlawful & illegal and should come to an end “as soon as possible”.
President of the ICJ Nawaf Salam in The Hague, read out the nonbinding advisory opinion issued by the 15-judge panel on Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory on Friday.
Also Read: Israeli Army Urges Gaza City Residents to Evacuate Ahead of Ceasefire Talks
The judges pointed to a wide list of policies – including the building and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, use of the area’s natural resources, the annexation and imposition of permanent control over lands and discriminatory policies against Palestinians – all of which it said violated international law.
The court said Israel has no right to sovereignty of the territories, is violating international laws against acquiring territory by force and is impeding Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
Israel’s “abuse of its status as the occupying power” renders its “presence in the occupied Palestinian territory unlawful”, the court said.
“Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and the regime associated with them, have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law,” the court said.
The court’s opinion was sought in a 2022 request from the United Nations General Assembly.
The ICJ, also known as the World Court, is the highest UN body for hearing disputes between states.
Israel captured the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem – areas of historic Palestine that the Palestinians want for a state – in a 1967 war. It has since built settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem and steadily expanded them. It also had settlements in Gaza before a 2005 withdrawal.
The UN and the vast majority of the international community consider the Palestinian territory as Israeli-occupied.
