The International Court of Justice (ICJ) declared on Friday, July 19, that the continued presence of the Israeli occupation in Palestinian territories is unlawful and mounting to de facto annexation, in an advisory ruling that has been considered historic in spite of being non-binding.
The advisory opinion was issued as per a request by the United Nations General Assembly to the International Court of Justice on December 30, 2022, to address the “Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory”. It is important to point out that the request was made by the General Assembly around 10 months prior to the October 7 attacks.
A panel consisting of 15 Judges in the ICJ issued the advisory opinion ruling, which was read by the President of the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Nawaf Salam, on Friday, July 19.
As per the ruling, the court called on Israel to end its occupation of the Palestinian territory which began in 1967 and has lasted for 57 years, including the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem “as rapidly as possible”. The court also ordered Israel to stop its settlement activities in the occupied territories. The ruling also asserted that Israel should evacuate all Israeli settlers from the West Bank and East Jerusalem and pay reparations to Palestinians for damages caused by the occupation. Regarding its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in 2005, ICJ president said that Israel did not end its occupation of Gaza by doing so as it still exercises effective control over the besieged strip.
The court also pointed out that “all states are under an obligation not to recognize as legal the situation arising from the unlawful presence of the State of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, and not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by the continued presence of the State of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The ICJ added that international organizations, including the United Nations, are under an obligation not to recognize as legal the situation arising from the unlawful presence of the State of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
While the Palestinian Presidency hailed ICJ’s ruling in a statement issued on Friday, declaring it a triumph for justice, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described it as a “decision of lies”. He denounced the court decision in a statement saying that “the Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land, not in our eternal capital Jerusalem, nor in our ancestral heritage of Judea and Samaria (referring to the West Bank)”.
