
Geoffrey Nice, a human rights barrister who led the prosecution of former Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic at an international criminal tribunal, has told Al Jazeera that the opinion issued by the highest UN court will surely affect Israel’s standing in the world.
- “For a long time, there has been real concern that the so-called world order supported by the world legal system has been prepared to play second fiddle to and be cowed down by political pressure,” he said, adding that the ICJ and the International Criminal Court are changing things now.
- “As a result of what’s happened in Russia and Ukraine, and more particularly perhaps in Israel and Gaza, the two senior international courts have emerged from periods of slow or no activity and they’ve shown that they are prepared to do that which they were set up to do,” Nice said.
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“It’s something the public would want, and it puts countries that are suppressing the application of international law, in particular the US and also Britain, in a difficult position.”
Nice said the UN General Assembly could now potentially move forward with suspending Israel’s activities at the organisation.
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“Israel is goinICJ agrees to all arguments brought against Israel’s occupationg to suffer. Is it going to suffer because of trade sanctions or matters of that sort? It’s hard to tell at this stage. But it’s going to suffer almost inevitably in the approach that is going to be taken by countries to the ongoing war between Israel and Gaza,” he said.
Source: Al Jazeera
ICJ agrees to all arguments brought against Israel’s occupation
The president of the International Court of Justice has said basically all the arguments that were brought forward by 52 states and international organisations during the hearings were valid.
The chief justice called them one by one, including displacement, exploitation, and the settler policies that he was really critical about. He said all these policies are violating international laws, including the Geneva Convention and the UN Charter.
He also said that Israel’s arguments for this occupation – meaning that they need the occupation for military and security purposes – are completely invalid. He actually called it a “permanent occupation” which is basically the same as annexation.
The judge said Israel has created an indefinite and irreversible situation for the Palestinian people.
This is going to be a landmark advisory opinion from the highest court of the UN, which is nonbinding but will still have implications.
It raises questions about the legality of the occupation, and also about the consequences of the occupation for all states involved and the UN. This is basically a question for all countries that have a relationship with Israel.
Source: Al Jazeera
HRW welcomes British funding restoration to UNRWA
Yasmine Ahmed, the head of Human Rights Watch (HRW) in the UK, has welcomed the British government’s decision to restore funding to UNRWA, saying it will save lives in Gaza.
- “The Israeli government is using starvation as a weapon of war and collectively punishing the people of Gaza. As a result, Gaza is facing catastrophic food insecurity as well as massive shortages of medical supplies. UNRWA’s networks, experience and capacity is vital to alleviating this suffering,” she said.
- “Withholding funding only exacerbated the horrific consequences of what has been a concerted campaign by the Israeli government to malign, discredit and undermine UNRWA’s critical and lifesaving work.”
Ahmed said this is a first step that must be followed up by blocking arms supplies to Israel.
The 🇬🇧 @DavidLammy decision 2 reinstate funding to @UNRWA will save lives & should be applauded. It hopefully heralds a more robust & mature approach to British foreign policy
🇮🇱is using starvation as a weapon of war & collectively punishing the Palestinians in Gaza 🧵
— Yasmine Ahmed (@YasmineAhmed001) July 19, 2024
Source: Al Jazeera
World Court: Israeli policy in territories violates international law, amounts to annexation
Source: TOI