The UN’s International Court of Justice said on Friday that it believes Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories is illegal and must end.
The International Court of Justice said Friday that Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories was “illegal” and called for an end to it and an immediate halt to settlement construction, issuing an unprecedented condemnation of Israel’s domination over the lands it seized 57 years ago.
In a non-binding opinion, the UN ICJ listed a long list of policies, including the construction and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, the use of the region’s natural resources, the annexation and imposition of permanent control over land, and discriminatory policies against Palestinians, all of which are contrary to international law.
The panel of 15 judges said that “Israel’s abuse of its status as an occupying power” makes his “presence in the occupied Palestinian territory illegal”. He claims that maintaining this presence is “illegal” and that it must be stopped “as quickly as possible”.
According to the 83-page opinion read by the court’s president, Mr. Nawaf Salam, Israel must immediately end settlement construction and existing settlements must be dismantled.
Israel, which traditionally views the United Nations and international courts as unfair and biased, did not send a legal team to the hearings. It did, however, submit written submissions, saying the questions posed to the court were prejudicial and did not address Israel’s security concerns. Israeli officials have said the court’s intervention could jeopardize the peace process, which has been stagnant for more than a decade.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s reaction
In response to the decision, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the West Bank and East Jerusalem were part of the “country” history of the Jewish people.
“The Jewish people are not conquerors in their own land – neither in our eternal capital, Jerusalem, nor in the land of our ancestors in Judea and Samaria.”he said in a message posted on the social network X. “No false decision from The Hague will distort this historical truth and, likewise, the legality of Israeli colonization in all territories of our homeland cannot be disputed.”
The court’s opinion, requested by the UN General Assembly following a Palestinian petition, is unlikely to affect Israeli policy. But its resounding scope could have an impact on international opinion.
