THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The U.N.’s top court ruled Friday that Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories is “illegal,” issuing an unprecedented condemnation of Israeli rule and calling for an immediate halt to settlement construction. Lands captured 57 years ago.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to condemn the nonbinding opinion issued by the International Court of Justice’s 15-judge panel, saying the territories were part of the historic “homeland” of the Jewish people. But the broad scope of the decision could sway international opinion and fuel moves to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state.
The judges pointed to a wide list of policies, including building and expanding Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, exploiting the region’s natural resources, annexing lands and imposing permanent control, and discriminatory policies against Palestinians. It is said to be in violation of international law.
The court held that Israel has no right to sovereignty over the territories, violates international laws against the acquisition of territory by force, and impedes the Palestinians’ right to self-determination. It said other countries “should not provide aid or assistance” in “maintaining” Israel’s presence in the territories. According to a summary of the more than 80-page opinion read by court president Nawab Salam, it said Israel must immediately halt settlement construction and demolish existing settlements.
The court said Israel’s “abuse of the status of occupying power” was its “illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory” and called for its presence to end “as quickly as possible”.
The court’s opinion, requested by the UN General Assembly after a Palestinian request, came in the wake of Israel’s devastating military offensive on Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel on October 7. In a separate case, the International Court of Justice is considering South Africa’s claim that Israel’s campaign in Gaza amounts to genocide. A claim Israel vehemently denies.
The court said the General Assembly and the Security Council – over which staunch Israeli ally the United States holds the veto – should consider “concrete means” to end Israel’s presence in the territories.
Israel, which generally views the United Nations and international courts as unfair and biased, has not sent a legal team to investigate. Instead, it submitted written comments to the court saying the questions were prejudicial and failed to address Israeli security concerns. Israeli officials have said the court’s intervention could destabilize a peace process that has stalled for more than a decade.
“The Jewish people are not conquerors of their own land – not in our eternal capital, Jerusalem, not in the land of our ancestors in Judea and Samaria,” Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office, using biblical terms for the West Bank. . “No wrong decision in The Hague can distort this historical truth, nor can we fight against the legality of Israeli settlement in all territories of our homeland.”
Speaking outside the court, Riyad Malki, an adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, called the verdict “an important moment for Palestine, for justice and international law.”
Other countries must now “uphold the clear obligations” outlined by the court, he said. “There are no measures to support Israel’s illegal occupation.”
Hamas welcomed the court’s ruling and said in a statement that “severe measures” should be taken in response.
Israel captured the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza in the 1967 Middle East War. The Palestinians seek an independent state for all three territories.
Israel views the West Bank as disputed territory whose future must be determined through negotiations, while moving people into settlements to cement its hold. It annexed East Jerusalem in a move it withdrew from Gaza in 2005, but maintained its blockade of the territory after Hamas seized power in 2007. The international community generally considers all three areas to be occupied territory.
The court’s ruling strikes at the heart of the ambiguity of Israel’s administration of the territories. Israel has not annexed the West Bank – although settler groups have pressed for it to do so – but it calls it part of its homeland and considers it an extension of the nation. Along with settlements, it has acquired large tracts of land as “government lands”. At the same time, Netanyahu’s government has repeatedly ruled out the creation of a Palestinian state. Abbas’s Palestinian Authority is limited to controlling the splintered enclaves scattered around the West Bank.
The Palestinians presented arguments A hearing in February, along with 49 other countries and three international organizations. At the trial, Malki accused Israel of apartheid and urged the United Nations High Court to declare Israel’s occupation of lands sought by the Palestinians illegal and to immediately and unconditionally end any hope for the future survival of the two states.
Erwin van Veen, a senior researcher at the Clinkendale think tank in The Hague, said before the decision that a ruling that Israel’s policies violate international law would “further isolate Israel internationally, at least from a legal perspective.”
Such a ruling, he said, would remove “any kind of legal, political, philosophical basis for the Israeli expansion plan”. He said it could also increase the number of countries recognizing a Palestinian state, particularly in the Western world, following the recent example of Spain and Norway and Ireland.
This is not the first time the ICJ has been asked to give its legal opinion on Israeli policies. More than two decades ago, the court ruled in Israel The barrier separating the West Bank “Contrary to international law.” Israel dismissed the measures as politically motivated.
Israel says the ban is a security measure. Palestinians say the system amounts to a massive land grab because it often dips into the West Bank.
The court said Israel’s construction of settlements in the West Bank violates international law.
According to the anti-immigration watchdog Peace Now, Israel has built more than 100 settlements. The number of settlers in the West Bank has increased by more than 15% in the past five years to more than 500,000 Israelis, according to a pro-immigrant group. Their residents are Israeli citizens governed by domestic law and served by government ministries, services, banks and other businesses – effectively integrating them into Israel.
Israel also annexes East Jerusalem and considers the entire city its capital. An additional 200,000 Israelis live in settlements built in East Jerusalem, which Israel considers the suburbs of its capital. Palestinian residents of the city Face formal discriminationIt is difficult for them to build new houses or expand their existing ones.
The international community considers all settlements illegal or an obstacle to peace because they are built on lands sought by Palestinians for their state.
Netanyahu’s hardline government is dominated by settlers and their political supporters. Netanyahu asked his finance minister, Bezalel Smodrich, a former settler leader, Unprecedented authority On settlement principle. Smodrich has used this position to assert Israel’s control over the West Bank and to propose plans to build more settlement houses and legalize outposts.
