The Palestinian presidency welcomed the “historic” decision issued by the International Court of Justice, today, Friday, in which it considered the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories illegal. On the other hand, Israeli officials launched a campaign condemning the court’s decision.

The Palestinian presidency said that it “welcomes the decision of the International Court of Justice, considers it a historic decision, and demands that Israel be obligated to implement it,” according to what was reported by the official news agency (Wafa).

She added that she considered "the court's decision a victory for justice, as the decision confirmed that the Israeli occupation is illegal."

In turn, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that "the advisory opinion has now become an irrefutable legal fact, and has legal consequences."

The ministry added, "The only solution consistent with international law is for Israel, the occupying power, to end its illegal occupation of the occupied Palestinian territory unconditionally and immediately."

Riyad al-Maliki, the Palestinian President's special envoy, also said that the International Court of Justice confirmed the Palestinians' right to freedom from colonialism.

Al-Maliki added that all countries must shoulder their duties not to recognize the illegal presence of Israel.

Today, the International Court of Justice called on Israel to put an end to the occupation of the Palestinian territories occupied after 1967, calling for an end to any measures that cause demographic or geographic change, in an unprecedented judicial step.

The court affirmed that Israel's continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territories is illegal, and that it is obligated to end its presence there as soon as possible.

The court said that Israel's settlement policies and exploitation of natural resources in the Palestinian territories constitute a violation of international law.

Israeli campaign

On the other hand, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “The Jewish people cannot be considered occupiers of their historic homeland,” in response to a decision by the International Court of Justice in which it said that Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank are a violation of international law.

Netanyahu added, "Any wrong decision in The Hague will not distort this historical fact, and the legitimacy of Israeli settlements in all the lands of our homeland cannot be challenged," he claimed.

For his part, Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir said, in a statement issued by his office, that the decision of the International Court of Justice in The Hague “proves for the thousandth time that this is a political and clearly anti-Semitic organization,” as he put it.

He added, claiming, "We will not receive moral preaching from them. The time has come for rule and sovereignty," according to the same statement.

Imposing sovereignty

In a second statement, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich considered that the answer to the Hague decision (referring to the Court of Justice) is “to impose sovereignty (over the West Bank) now.”

Last July, the Israeli government claimed that it had “the right to impose its sovereignty over the West Bank,” saying that “the Jewish people have the exclusive right to self-determination on these lands.”

Israel occupied the West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, in 1967. International law prohibits Israel from annexing any parts of the West Bank, according to numerous United Nations statements in recent years.

On December 31, 2022, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution requesting the International Court of Justice to issue a non-binding “advisory opinion” on “the legal consequences arising from Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem,” relating to the long occupation. Term of the Palestinian territories since 1967.

Source: Al Jazeera + agencies