The International Court of Justice will begin hearing a case against Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory on Monday, less than a month after it issued a series of instructions to Tel Aviv in a separate case accusing it of genocide in the Gaza Strip. Not yet.
In the first of its kind, at least 52 countries will debate Israel's controversial policies in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and occupied East Jerusalem. This is the largest number of parties to a single ICJ case since the ICJ was established in 1945.
Since 1967, Israeli authorities have illegally occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem (part of Palestine under the historic Palestinian partition decided by the United Nations in 1948), restricting Palestinian citizenship and denying free freedom. It operates a system that hinders and deprives people of their movement. ancestral land. From 1967 to 2005, Israel also directly occupied Gaza and since 2007 has imposed a land, sea and air blockade on the coastal enclave. Determine what food, water, medicine, fuel, construction materials, and other goods can enter Gaza, and stop the flow if necessary.
The war in Gaza is now in its fifth month, with Palestinians in the West Bank facing increasing attacks from Israeli forces that have left hundreds dead.
The ICJ said in a statement last week that oral arguments in the case are expected to last about a week, during which all countries and three international organizations are expected to state their reasons for supporting or opposing Israel's measures. Tel Aviv declined to submit, choosing instead to submit written arguments. A court decision could come within months.
Here's what you need to know about this:
Who filed the lawsuit against Israel?
The case was triggered by a request from the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on December 30, 2022, when a majority of member states voted to seek a court opinion on the legal consequences of Israel's continued occupation of Palestine. Arab countries, Russia and China voted in favor of the move, while Israel, the US, Germany and 24 other countries voted against it.
During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel occupied Arab-majority East Jerusalem and the West Bank, formerly under Jordanian control. Most countries and the United Nations still view occupied East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state, and view Israel's occupation as illegal under international law.
In a lengthy letter to the ICJ signed by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, UNGA asked the judge how the rights of the Palestinian people are being affected by the occupation and continued displacement attempts; He asked them to answer questions about Palestinian responsibility. The United Nations and its member states faced these violations.
“What legal consequences arise from Israel’s continued violation of the Palestinians’ right to self-determination, long-term occupation, settlement, and annexation, aimed at changing the demography, character, and status of the holy city of Jerusalem? , and from the adoption of related discriminatory laws and measures?, the UNGA letter asked.
The UNGA asked the court to answer these questions using a combination of international humanitarian law, the UN Charter and various UN resolutions. According to Human Rights Watch, Israel's policies in the occupied territories amount to apartheid and persecution, both of which are crimes against humanity.
The Hague-based court hears and rules on matters between nations, and this is the second time it has considered Israel's illegal occupation. In 2004, the ICJ ruled that the Israeli “barrier” in the West Bank separating many Palestinian families was illegal and should be removed. However, Israel rejected this ruling and subsequently expanded the wall.
Which countries will participate?
Oral hearings will begin on Monday, February 19th and continue until Monday, February 26th.
A total of 52 countries (approximately 10 countries a day) will present arguments to the ICJ judges throughout the week. A majority of them had initially voted in favor of the UN's decision to approach the ICJ. A handful of countries, including Canada, voted against it, while Switzerland abstained.
A legal team representing the Palestinian state will begin hearings on Monday. Teams from South Africa and Canada will be among the speakers on Tuesday. The United States, China and Russia will speak from Wednesday to Thursday, with Maldives completing its final presentation.
Three multilateral organizations, the Arab League, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the African Union, also make claims in the lawsuit.
So is this different from South Africa's ICJ case against Israel?
that's right. The case is separate from another ICJ case filed by South Africa on December 29, alleging that Israel is guilty of genocide in the Gaza Strip as part of its continuing war there. .
In a preliminary ruling in the case, the court ordered Israel to prevent and punish incitement to genocide and provide necessary humanitarian aid by February 26.
The case, which begins trial on Monday, is not directly related to Israel's current war in Gaza, but concerns many of the violations of international law binding Tel Aviv's approach to all Palestinian territory. There is.
What will the court's decision be?
The ICJ is made up of 15 judges from around the world, elected by the UNGA for nine-year terms. Lebanon's Judge Nawaf Salam is currently the president.
The judges will hear extensive presentations and then give their written opinions. It is unclear when the opinion will be released, but the ICJ process is painstaking and typically takes time. Some legal experts say the opinion could surface before the end of the year.
It is difficult to predict exactly what opinion the court will take in this case or how that opinion will be expressed. The ICJ has ruled against Israel in the past, including in its 2004 West Bank wall decision, and most recently issued an interim measures ruling in January, but many experts believe that Israel is It says compliance can only be achieved by effectively ending the war in Gaza.
But even if it were to surface, the court's opinion would not be binding on the Security Council or Israel, meaning it would not have to be enforced. But experts say the opinion from the ICJ carries weight and could put further pressure on Israel and its staunchest ally, the United States, to comply with international law.