The International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued a non-binding advisory opinion on Friday at the request of the UN General Assembly on the legal consequences of Israel's practices and policies in the occupied Palestinian territory of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The President of the ICJ, Nawaf Salam, read the opinion, in which the judges of the highest UN court found that Israel's settlement policy violates several international standards, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, and that Israel's practices in those areas de facto the “annexation” of large parts of it.
Salam also stated that the occupation of the West Bank creates “systematic discrimination, segregation and apartheid” as a result of Israel’s practices of segregating Palestinians from Israelis, restricting their freedom of movement, expelling and confiscating their land, and destroying their homes. Furthermore, the court also found that Israel’s exploitation of Palestinian resources and the restriction of Palestinian access to its resources are contrary to international law and Israel’s obligations as an occupying power.
The International Court of Justice finds that Israel's policies and practices violate the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, which includes the right to dispose of their land and resources.
The United Nations Court in The Hague answered the General Assembly’s questions of December 2022 as follows: “What are the legal consequences flowing from Israel’s continued violation of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, its prolonged occupation, colonization and annexation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory since 1967, including measures aimed at changing the demographic composition, character and status of the Holy City of Jerusalem, and its adoption of related discriminatory legislation and measures?” It also asked: “How do Israel’s above-mentioned policies and practices (…) affect the legal status of the occupation, and what are the legal consequences flowing from this status for all States and the United Nations?”
Recommendations to UN States
Judges of the International Court of Justice have asked all UN states not to recognize any changes on the ground, because “Israel’s continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is illegal,” and reminded them not to provide assistance to Israel. Likewise, all states must distinguish between Israel and the Occupied Territories. Therefore, they have concluded that Israel must stop building settlements, evacuate existing ones and end its “illegal presence” as soon as possible. It also has an obligation to repair the damage caused to Palestinians by the occupation.
In preparing their opinion, the judges took into account, among other things, international humanitarian law, the Charter of the United Nations and the resolutions of the organization's Security Council; in addition, last February they heard arguments from 52 countries, including Palestine, Spain and the United States – Israel was not among them – and three international organizations (the Arab League, the African Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation).
Of these countries, almost half claimed that Israel commits the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution of Palestinians, within the framework of its occupation. Spain denounced a “system of legal fragmentation in the context of a structure of institutionalized discrimination” and listed violations of international law by Israeli forces, such as the detention of children or settlements.
Israel took control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem during the 1967 Six-Day War and has maintained a military occupation of the Palestinian territories ever since. However, the laws of occupation do not apply in these areas, nor does it fulfill its legal obligations as an occupying power.
In response to the ICJ's advice, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said has stated via the social network that “the Jewish people are not an occupier in their own land, nor in their eternal capital, Jerusalem, nor in the land of their ancestors in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank).” He has also defended “the legality of Israeli settlements in all areas of the homeland.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, for his part, has asked the international community to force Israel to end “its colonial project” in the Palestinian territories, after the International Court of Justice deemed the occupation “illegal.” “We ask the international community to force Israel, the occupying power, to end the occupation and its colonial project completely and immediately, without any limitations or conditions,” he said in statements quoted by EFE Agency. He added that the ICJ ruling “renews the hope of the Palestinian people for a future free from colonialism, on the path to achieving their absolute and non-negotiable right to self-determination and liberation.”