On Sunday, the Palestinian presidency rejected Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid's threats after a committee at the United Nations adopted a draft Palestinian resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the Israeli occupation.
"The constant threats by the leaders of the occupation and accusing the State of Palestine of having taken a unilateral measure is surprising," said Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
He added, in statements carried by the official Palestinian News Agency, that the occupation takes daily unilateral measures, whether by violating agreements or by not complying with them in all fields.
He added that the State of Palestine has the right to resort to international legitimacy and international law, and the Palestinian people and their leadership will not give up their rights guaranteed by international legitimacy and international law.
This came in response to what Ofir Gendelman, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said. On Sunday morning, he held several security and political meetings and discussions. At the end of it, he instructed the preparation of a security and political toolbox to respond to the Palestinian move at the United Nations.
Gendelman added - in a tweet on Twitter - that Lapid, whose term expires within weeks, said during the meeting, "The path to resolving the conflict does not pass through the corridors of the United Nations or through other international institutions, and there will be repercussions for the Palestinian step."
The Israeli Prime Minister did not reveal the nature of these repercussions.
For its part, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said in a statement on Sunday, "The Israeli hysteria towards the UN resolution reflects the fear of international accountability for the crime of racist colonialism."
Last Friday, the United Nations Commission on Decolonization adopted a Palestinian draft resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the Israeli occupation.
The resolution, which was approved at the United Nations headquarters in New York, asks the International Court of Justice to "urgently" give its opinion on "Israel's long-term occupation, settlement and annexation of Palestinian lands," which it said violated the Palestinians' right to self-determination.
98 countries supported the resolution, 17 countries opposed, while 52 countries abstained.
It is scheduled to vote on the draft resolution at a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly before the middle of next month, and countries usually vote in the General Assembly as they voted on the draft resolution in the Committee.
In the 1967 Middle East war, Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, areas the Palestinians want for their state.
US-sponsored peace talks between the Palestinian and Israeli sides stalled in 2014.
Israel and America
In contrast, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said that by calling for the involvement of the International Court of Justice, "the Palestinians are undermining any chances of reconciliation."
Addressing the committee, Erdan added, "The Palestinians have rejected every peace initiative, and now they are implicating an external body under the pretext that the conflict has not been resolved?"
השקרים והצביעות של הפלשתינים לא גבול גבול: הם אלה שדחו יוזמת שלום או תוכנית שלום מאז 1947 ועד היום היום ועכשיו הם בתירוץ שהסכסוך לא נפתר כדי לפנות לבית הדין בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג בהאג
הסכסוך הזה לא נפתר בגלל תמיכתם בטרור, בגלל השנאה שלהם וסרבנותם לשלום.
צפו בקטע>> pic.twitter.com/gNkHExXxqt
— Ambassador Gilad Erdan גלעד ארדן (@giladerdan1) November 11, 2022
At the meeting of the Fourth Committee on Thursday, the deputy representative of the United States to the United Nations, who voted against the resolution, said that the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice "will be counterproductive and will only lead to diverting the two parties from the goal that we all want, which is the implementation of the two-state solution through negotiations."
The last time the International Court of Justice addressed the Palestinian-Israeli conflict was in 2004, when it ruled that Israel's separation barrier is illegal, and Tel Aviv disputed the court's opinion.