According to the International Court of Justice, the advisory opinion is not legally binding, but it carries “legal weight and great moral authority” (social networking sites)

The United Nations Supreme Court on Monday begins a week-long hearing on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories in The Hague. The meeting is expected to witness the attendance of representatives from more than 50 countries.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki is scheduled to deliver his first speech in these sessions, where legal procedures will be reviewed before the International Court of Justice in The Hague.

These sessions come based on a previous request submitted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2022, which asked the court to issue an advisory opinion on the Israeli occupation. This is the second time that the United Nations General Assembly has asked the International Court of Justice to issue an advisory opinion related to the occupied Palestinian territories.

It is noted that this request comes in light of the escalation of political pressure on Israel due to the ongoing war on the Gaza Strip, which resulted in the martyrdom of thousands of Palestinians.

Many countries will participate in the sessions, including the United States, along with China, Russia, South Africa and Egypt, while Israel sent written notes instead of appearing before the court.

The hearings constitute part of Palestinian efforts to push international legal institutions to examine Israel's behavior, and this matter has become more urgent after the aggression launched by Israel on the Gaza Strip in response to the "Al-Aqsa Flood" operation launched by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on the settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip.

These sessions come amid growing fears of an Israeli ground attack on the city of Rafah in Gaza, which is considered the last refuge for more than a million Palestinians after they fled to the southern Gaza Strip to avoid Israeli attacks.

Israel is violating international law

Israel seized the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, areas where Palestinians seek to establish their state, in the 1967 war. Despite its withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, it still controls its borders alongside Egypt.

In July 2004, the court ruled that the separation wall built by Israel in the West Bank violates international law and must be dismantled, although it continues to exist today.

The judges must now review Israel's "occupation, settlement and annexation", including measures aimed at changing the demographics and status of the city of Jerusalem, and its adoption of relevant discriminatory legislation and measures.

The General Assembly also asked the 15-judge panel to provide advice on “the impact of those policies and practices on the legal status of occupation,” and the legal consequences of that status for all countries and the United Nations.

The advisory opinion procedure is separate from the genocide case, which South Africa brought in the International Court against Israel for its violations in the Gaza Strip of the 1948 Genocide Convention.

At the end of last January, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel in this case to take all necessary measures to prevent genocide in Gaza. Until this moment, Israel has not complied with that decision.

According to the International Court of Justice, the advisory opinion is not legally binding, but will carry “significant legal weight and moral authority.”

Source: Reuters