International Court Rules Israeli Settlements in Violation of International Law

July 19, 2024 TruthUSA

The United Nations’ highest court stated on Friday that Israel’s settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are illegal and must be removed immediately. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dismissed the court’s decision.

In a nonbinding, advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) concluded that Israel is obligated to end its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as quickly as possible. They added that Israeli settlements in East Jerusalem and the West Bank are established and maintained in violation of international law.

The opinion was delivered by a panel of 15 judges from various countries, with 11 in favor and four against declaring the settlements illegal.

The supporting judges include the court’s president from Lebanon, as well as judges from Somalia, China, India, Japan, Germany, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, the United States, and South Africa. The four opposing judges included the court’s vice-president from Uganda, and judges from Slovakia, France, and Romania.

Additionally, in a separate 14–1 vote, the ICJ panel called for an immediate halt to new settlement construction and the removal of all settlers from what they described as occupied Palestinian territory, referring to East Jerusalem and the West Bank. The lone dissenting judge in this instance was Vice-President Julia Sebutinde from Uganda.

The ICJ opinion also highlighted that the U.N. Security Council, the U.N. General Assembly, and all member states are obligated not to acknowledge the settlements as legal and should not provide aid or assistance in maintaining Israel’s presence in the territories.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry hailed the opinion as “historic” and called on U.N. states to adhere to it. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki stated outside the court in The Hague, “No aid. No assistance. No complicity. No money, no arms, no trade … no actions of any kind to support Israel’s illegal occupation.”

The case originated from a 2022 request for a legal opinion from the UN General Assembly, predating the Israel–Hamas conflict in Gaza that began last October. Israel gained control of the West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem during the 1967 Middle East conflict known as the Six-Day War which engaged Israel against Egypt, Syria, Jordan, and other Arab nations.

In a prompt response on Friday, Mr. Netanyahu dismissed the court’s conclusions.

“The Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land, including in our eternal capital Jerusalem nor in Judea and Samaria, our historical homeland. No absurd opinion in the Hague can deny this historical truth or the legal right of Israelis to live in their own communities in our [ancestral] home,” he wrote on X.

Israel’s foreign ministry also rejected the opinion as “fundamentally wrong” and one-sided, emphasizing their belief that a political settlement in the region can only be achieved through negotiations.

The opinion also sparked outrage among West Bank settlers and politicians like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who resides in a West Bank settlement closely linked to the settler movement.

“The answer to The Hague – Sovereignty now,” he wrote in a post on X, seemingly advocating for the formal annexation of the West Bank.

Israel Gantz, head of the Binyamin Regional Council, one of the largest settler councils, also denounced the ICJ opinion as “contrary to the Bible, morality, and international law.”

The United States, which has not publicly commented on the ICJ opinion Friday, had urged the court not to mandate the unconditional withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Palestinian territories. The U.S. stance was that the court should refrain from issuing any decision that could impede negotiations toward a two-state solution based on a “land for peace” principle.

The ICJ ruling comes after the International Criminal Court announced its intention to seek arrest warrants for Mr. Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and several Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes committed during the Israel-Hamas conflict following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks that resulted in the deaths of 1,200 civilians and the kidnapping of 250, including American citizens.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Source link