ICJP Statement on ICJ Ruling: Israel’s unlawful annexation and racially discriminatory structures of apartheid must end
London, 19th July 2024- Today, the International Court of Justice issued a historic Advisory Opinion on Israel and Palestine, finding that Israel’s continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt) is unlawful, in addition to concluding that Israel’s policies and practices against the Palestinian people are systematically discriminatory on the basis of race, religion or ethnic origin. The Advisory Opinion also found that Israeli policies and practices amount to an unlawful annexation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem.
The court ruled that at State level, there is a systematic breach of Article 3 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD). This makes Israel a State that has comprehensive policies, practices and restrictions on Palestinians designed to structurally discriminate on the basis of race.
This ruling comes at the request of the United Nations General Assembly, on the 30th December 2022, in response to Israel’s blatant disregard for United Nations Security Council resolutions, evident in its aggressive and illegal settlement building and constant violations of humanitarian laws.
The court also identified indefinite Israeli policies and practices that amounted to unlawful annexation of parts of the oPt. These include Israel’s maintenance and expansion of settlements, exploitation of natural resources, proclamation of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and comprehensive application of Israeli domestic law in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Together, these policies entrench Israel’s control of the oPt, and as they are designed to remain in place indefinitely, they constitute intended unlawful annexation.
Based on these rulings, The ICJ also found that Israel is not entitled to sovereignty in any part of the oPt, and it also identified obligations that fall on Israel, including:
- Ceasing all new settlement activity;
- Repealing all legislation creating or maintaining the unlawful situation;
- Providing full reparation for the damage caused by its internationally wrongful acts to all natural or legal persons concerned;
- Evacuating all settlers from existing settlements and dismantling parts of the wall;
- Allowing all Palestinians displaced during the occupation to return to their place of residence.
The court also laid down obligations that fall on Member States. States must not recognise any changes in the physical character of demographic composition, institutional structure or status of the oPt. States must also abstain from political, diplomatic, economic and trade dealings with Israel relating to the oPt and must not render aid or maintenance to an illegal situation.
In response to the findings, the Foreign Office released a statement saying that it ‘respects the independence of the International Court of Justice.’ This statement comes only days after intense speculation that the UK is considering the idea of maintaining the previous government’s policy of intervening in the International Criminal Court’s application for arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. Such a move would show a disregard for the independence of international legal institutions, in direct contravention to the Foreign Office’s statement on respecting the independence of the ICJ and its wider sentiments of expressing the international rules-based order.
Senior Legal Officer Dania Abul Haj said:
“The list of international law violations by Israel is long. The international community has allowed Israel to continue to act as a criminal State with total impunity for far too long.
The court has ruled that Israel’s policies present obligations to all states to end the occupation. The failure to do this is the single cause that leads to violence. This must stop today.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
- The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians is an independent organisation of lawyers, politicians and academics who support the rights of Palestinians and aim to protect their rights through the law.
- For more information, or to arrange an interview with a spokesperson, please contact the ICJP news desk at press@icjpalestine.com.