The United States and Russia will present arguments on Wednesday in proceedings at the U.N.'s highest court examining the legality of Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories.
More than 50 states will present arguments until Feb. 26. Egypt and France were also scheduled to speak on Wednesday.
On Monday, Palestinian representatives asked the judges to declare Israel's occupation of their territory illegal and said its opinion could help reach a two-state solution.
On Tuesday, 10 states including South Africa were overwhelmingly critically of Israel's conduct in the occupied territories, with many urging the court to declare the occupation illegal.
Russia’s representative calls for vicious circle to be broken in Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Vladimir Tarabrin, Russia’s ambassador to the Netherlands, has taken the floor summarising the suffering of the Palestinian people, condemning the October 7 attack on Israel, but slamming the Israeli retaliation as “collective punishment” that cannot be justified.
He said:
- Images from Gaza are terrifying. Indiscriminate air strikes are killing civilians and erasing whole residential districts … Up to 90 percent of Gazans have been forced to leave their homes and they are living in inhumane conditions. Against the backdrop of tough Israeli blockade the Gaza Strip is experiencing a genuine humanitarian catastrophe.
- Russia of all countries understands the danger of terrorism. We have faced this evil time and again. Let me use this opportunity to reiterate our heartfelt condolences to the Israelis who lost their loved ones in the attack on the 7th of October. Brutal massacre of innocent people, taking of hostages and other terrorist violence do not have and cannot have any justification.
- We are convinced the tragic events of the 7th of October cannot justify the collective punishment of more than 2 million Gazans. We cannot accept the logic of those officials in Israel and some Western countries who try to defend the indiscriminate violence against civilians by referring to Israel’s duty to protect its nationals. Violence can only lead to more violence. Hatred brings hatred. This vicious circle must be broken.
Russia follows US arguments after a break. The creation of a Palestinian state is the “most reliable” solution for peace in Israel and fighting alone won’t ensure security, Russia said previously.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in October that Moscow had “serious questions” about Western policy on Israel, noting wars and turmoil continue because “the main reason [for the conflict] needs to be eliminated”.
“The Palestinian problem should not be delayed further,” Lavrov said at the time.
Russia invited representatives of all Palestinian factions – including Fatah and Hamas – to Moscow for talks on Monday. President Vladimir Putin said earlier this month Moscow could play the role of mediator, thanks to its friendly ties with both Israel and the Palestinians, adding “No one could suspect us of playing up to one party”.
ICJ hearing resumes
The hearing has resumed for the afternoon session. The Russian Federation is the first to take the floor.
We’ll bring you more live updates shortly.
Why South Africa sued Israel for genocide
The ICJ also recently heard a case brought by South Africa accusing Israel of genocide.
Rulings by the ICJ are legally binding, but the court has no way of enforcing them. So will it make a difference as the Israeli war on Gaza goes on?
Egypt on Israeli occupation of Palestine
Egypt’s Jasmine Moussa said Palestine has been subjected to the “longest protracted occupation in modern history” as she denounced “the ongoing obstruction of the Palestinian people’s inalienable, permanent and unqualified right to self-determination”.
Egypt’s representative says there is “overwhelming evidence that Israeli support for and maintenance of settlements is intended to permanently alter the demographic composition of the occupied Palestinian territory and extend Israeli sovereignty over it”.
“This is coupled with Israel’s mass forcible transfer and forced displacement of the Palestinians in Gaza through its illegal evacuation orders and indiscriminate use of force,” Moussa says.
Cairo wants the “establishment of a viable Palestinian state on the pre-1967 lines with East Jerusalem as its capital”, she said.
Moussa highlighted the “ongoing violation by Israel of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination from its prolonged occupation, settlement and annexation of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967”.
Egypt’s legal counsellor Jasmine Moussa has taken the floor. She says the ongoing grave violations of international law are part of a “wider policy aimed at dispossessing Palestinians of their land”, which is “manifestly illegal and renders the occupation as a whole unlawful”.
“It is shocking that some states do not want the court to render its legal opinion. What message does this send on their respect for international justice and the rule of law?” she asked.
The court has jurisdiction on the matter, Moussa added. “Rather than prejudicing the peace process, it would serve as an additional, essential element for the UN General Assembly to carry out its role. This is critical given the complete absence of any real prospect for a peaceful solution.”
Israeli violations ‘worsening at an alarming pace’: UAE
Nusseibeh says the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories has rapidly deteriorated over the past year.
“The level of human suffering for people in Gaza is on a level rarely seen in human history. Israel has imposed a policy of collective punishment on the Palestinian people,” she said.
Last year was by far the deadliest year for Palestinian in the occupied West Bank with the highest level of settler violence recorded by the UN, she added.
“I raise these recent developments to underline that the violations at the core of the questions posed by the General Assembly are not static. After decades of violent dehumanisation, dispossession and despair, the breaches resulting from the Israeli occupation are worsening at an alarming pace,” she said.
The UAE’s envoy also underlined the unique character of the city of Jerusalem and said it has “given rise to specific legal obligations including specific guarantees of access”.
Lana Nusseibeh, the United Arab Emirates ambassador to the United Nations, is now speaking.
“International law cannot be an a la carte menu. It must apply equally to all, and it is all the more essential in the long shadow cast by the Palestinian question and injustice that has persisted for more than seven decades,” she said.
The UAE believes the only path to “just and lasting peace is through the fulfilment of the long-denied right of the Palestinian people to self-determination with an independent and sovereign Palestine based on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital”, Nusseibeh added.
No comments:
Post a Comment