Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory found "illegal" by UN top court

Israel's decades-long occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal and needs to end "as rapidly as possible," the UN's top court said Friday.

The Hague, Netherlands - Israel's decades-long occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal and needs to end "as rapidly as possible," the UN's top court said Friday.

(From R) South African Judge Dire Tladi, US Judge Sarah Cleveland, Brazilian Judge Leonardo Nemer Caldeira Brant, German Judge Georg Nolte, Idian Judge Dalveer Bhandari, Somali Judge Abdulqawi Yusuf, Slovak Judge Peter Tomka, Lebanese Judge and President of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Nawaf Salam, Ugandan Judge and Vice-President of the International Court of Justice Julia Sebutinde, French Judge Ronny Abraham, Chinese Judge Xue Hanqin, Japanese Judge Yuji Iwasawa, Australian Judge Hilary Charlesworth, Mexican Judge Juan Manuel Gomez Robledo, Romanian Judge Bogdan Lucian Aurescu rise before delivering a non-binding ruling on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on Friday.
(From R) South African Judge Dire Tladi, US Judge Sarah Cleveland, Brazilian Judge Leonardo Nemer Caldeira Brant, German Judge Georg Nolte, Idian Judge Dalveer Bhandari, Somali Judge Abdulqawi Yusuf, Slovak Judge Peter Tomka, Lebanese Judge and President of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Nawaf Salam, Ugandan Judge and Vice-President of the International Court of Justice Julia Sebutinde, French Judge Ronny Abraham, Chinese Judge Xue Hanqin, Japanese Judge Yuji Iwasawa, Australian Judge Hilary Charlesworth, Mexican Judge Juan Manuel Gomez Robledo, Romanian Judge Bogdan Lucian Aurescu rise before delivering a non-binding ruling on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague on Friday.  © Nick Gammon / AFP

The UN's General Assembly asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in late 2022 to give an "advisory opinion" on the "legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem."

"The court has found that Israel's continued presence in the Palestinian Territories is illegal," ICJ presiding judge Nawaf Salam said Friday, adding that "Israel must end the occupation as rapidly as possible."

"The Court has found that Israel's... continued presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory is illegal," Salam said.

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"The State of Israel is under the obligation to bring an end to its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible," the judge said.

The ICJ held a week-long session in February to hear submissions from countries following the request – supported by most countries within the assembly.

Most speakers during the hearings called on Israel to end its 57-year occupation. They warned a prolonged occupation posed an "extreme danger" to stability in the Middle East and beyond.

But the US said Israel should not be legally obliged to withdraw without taking its "very real security needs" into account.

Israel did not take part in the oral hearings.

Instead, it submitted a written contribution in which it described the questions the court had been asked as "prejudicial" and "tendentious."

Cover photo: Nick Gammon / AFP

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