Foreign Policy magazine said that any multilateral sanctions campaign on the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories will not be effective unless it is supported by the strength of the dollar, which dominates global trade.

Western reports mean by "occupied Palestinian territories" those located within the borders before June 5, 1967, which are proposed within the two-state solution.

The magazine pointed out - in an article by lawyer Mohsen Farshani - that the international community, led by the United States and its allies, faces a critical choice in dealing with the war on Gaza as the Middle East approaches a comprehensive war, either to bet on a possible peace under a belligerent Israeli government, or to impose a new policy by implementing a historic legal ruling.

The magazine explained that the International Court of Justice issued an advisory opinion a few weeks ago declaring that Israel's continued occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal, and urging its end "as soon as possible", including the transfer of "Israeli civilians" to the occupied territories, the confiscation of Palestinian lands, and the exploitation of natural resources for the benefit of settlers.

For this opinion to be a step toward accountability, the United States and its allies must show respect for the rules-based order they once helped establish but have disavowed whenever it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the author argues.

The ruling will remain a hollow gesture from the highest authority in international law unless Washington imposes economic sanctions on the illegal occupation and its settlements, though the court’s opinion is a sign of a growing global consensus that Israel should not be allowed to act with impunity in the Palestinian territories.

The right direction

There is some movement in this direction, the author notes, and indeed a senior Australian government source said the ICJ’s opinion “cannot be ignored.”

Australia has since begun imposing sanctions, and German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has acknowledged the seriousness of the ruling. Canada has imposed sanctions on Amana, a leading West Bank settlement organization with assets estimated at $160 million, and singled out Daniela Weiss, a controversial figure who leads the Nachala movement, which focuses on establishing “illegal” outposts.

Israel has yet to see any serious consequences for its blatant violations of international law, the author argues, as Israeli leaders, companies, and organizations involved in the occupation and the expansion of illegal settlements continue to enjoy global connections while violating international law and human rights norms.

Sanctions

US sanctions targeting settler violence and instability have been slow but effective so far, and President Joe Biden issued an executive order to address threats to “peace, security, and stability in the West Bank.”

The first round of sanctions targeted only four individuals, and Israeli banks immediately halted financial transactions with them, sparking a backlash in Israel.

However, isolated measures that treat violence, land grabs, and human rights violations as anomalies rather than inherent features of the occupation are insufficient to meet the ICJ’s opinion, the lawyer argues, and an effective sanctions program must therefore target both the direct perpetrators of violence and the broader infrastructure that supports the occupation.

Fershani noted that Dawn, an organization that promotes democracy and human rights in the Middle East and North Africa, has made multiple requests to the US government to impose and enforce sanctions on entities involved in the most egregious forms of violence and illegal violations, such as Tsav 9, which is known for its attacks on aid trucks bound for the Gaza Strip.

Basis for Sanctions

In order to act on the ICJ’s opinion and the official US foreign policy goal of a two-state solution, the author called on the Biden administration to explicitly acknowledge that the illegality of the Israeli occupation is the root cause of violence and instability in the West Bank, so that a targeted sanctions program could eventually include key entities such as banks that finance or support illegal settlements.

The lawyer noted that only US sanctions tend to have a global impact because the US dollar dominates global trade as the world’s primary reserve currency, giving Washington significant leverage over global financial activity, and its sanctions can disrupt transactions beyond its borders.

Only unilateral US sanctions or US-backed multilateral sanctions can exert the necessary pressure on Israel to cease its illegal activities in the occupied territories.

Veto

Sanctions can achieve their goals in two ways: either UN sanctions or multilateral sanctions, but the former would require Washington to take the unprecedented step of refraining from using its veto power against any Security Council resolution under Chapter VII on Israel’s illegal activities.

The latter option would require the United States to organize multilateral sanctions in coordination with its allies, such as those launched in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The goal, the author argues, would be to dramatically increase the economic cost of sustaining the occupation and its associated apartheid policies, forcing a policy shift at the highest levels of the Israeli government.

The ICJ ruling provides the legal and moral basis for such an effort, and could serve as the foundation for the just and long-term geopolitical solution that both the Palestinian and Israeli peoples deserve.

Source: Foreign Policy+ AlJazeera