Meltdown in Israel over the ICJ ruling

Israeli minister says Israel will ‘not move an inch’ after warning

In a post on X, Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said Judea and Samaria is the land of our ancestors, referring to the Israeli name for the occupied West Bank.

“For 2,000 years we prayed to return there and no distorted decision of a biased and anti-Semitic court will move us an inch,” he said.

He further referred to the 2005 Israeli withdrawal from Gaza as a mistake, saying Israel would not replicated it by ending its occupation of the West Bank.

‘Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land’: Netanyahu

The Israeli prime minister remains defiant after the World Court opinion, refusing to recognise occupied Palestinian territory.

“The Jewish people are not conquerors in their own land – neither in our eternal capital Jerusalem nor in the land of our ancestors in Judea and Samaria,” he said in a post on X, referring to the occupied West Bank using its Israeli name.

“No false decision in The Hague will distort this historical truth, and the legality of Israeli settlement in all the territories of our homeland cannot be disputed.”

Israel’s Lapid says ICJ ruling detached from ‘reality on the ground’

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid has criticised the opinion issued by the ICJ, saying it is “detached, one-sided, tainted with anti-Semitism and a lack of understanding of the reality on the ground”.

“It only serves Islamic terrorism and the campaign against Israel,” Lapid said on X.

He blamed Netanyahu’s government, saying the international court’s ruling was “another political failure of a dysfunctional government”.

Israeli ambassador calls for ‘unprecedented actions’ against UN after ICJ ruling

Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, has said those measures could include closing the UN complex in Jerusalem and deporting UN agency heads from Israel.

Israel has previously banned UN employees and officials, including the UN’s special rapporteur for the West Bank and Gaza, Francesca Albanese.

Erdan added he has “no doubt” that the US would veto any security council resolutions introduced in the wake of today’s ruling, which said Israel’s settlement policies in the in the occupied West Bank are in breach of international law.

Several analysts have told Al Jazeera the ruling from the top court could make it more difficult for the US – which has veto power at the UN Security Council – to shield Israel from such resolutions.

Israel’s far-right ministers call for ‘sovereignty’ after ICJ ruling

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir has reacted to the ICJ ruling, labelling the court’s decision as “clearly anti-Semitic and political”.

“We will not accept moral preaching from the court, as the time for rule and sovereignty has come,” he said, according to Israel Hayom.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich wrote on X that the answer to the court’s ruling in the Hague was “Sovereignty now."

ICJ ruling could help propel boycott against Israel

The ICJ ruling could provide an important ground for the boycott movement to obtain sanctions against Israeli settlements, for instance, within the EU community.

The EU continues to trade with Israeli companies operating in the occupied Palestinian territory. They only ask that these products be labelled as such. Today’s ruling could help propel the movements to boycott and put more pressure on Israel.

This is a win for the Palestinian Authority, which has made the international arena its main front in the battle against the occupation. The issue is that there is no positive correlation between what is going on on the ground and what is going on in the international arena.

While Palestinians are making gains in the international courts, the situation on the ground is getting worse. International law, as important as it is, gives us the moral compass, but so far, it has failed to provide security, freedom and self-determination.

Blinken says ceasefire talks near ‘goal line’

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said that a ceasefire deal that would see the release of the remaining captives in Gaza is near the “goal line”.

Stalled talks between mediators, Hamas and Israel showed signs of new life earlier this month, after stalling for weeks, although their future has remained uncertain in recent days.

“I believe we’re inside the 10-yard line and driving toward the goal line,” Blinken said, referring to the final yards before scoring in American football. Still, he said the parties were finishing negotiations of “critical details” and that “last 10 yards are often the hardest”.

Blinken, speaking during an interview at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado, was not asked about today’s ICJ ruling.

BDS movement calls for ‘maximum pressure’ after ICJ ruling

The nonviolent Palestinian-led movement Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) has called for “maximum pressure on all states to impose immediate targeted sanctions on Israel,” after the ICJ issued a ruling saying Israel’s settlement policies and exploitation of natural resources in the Palestinian territory were in breach of international law.

The movement, which attempts to use economic and cultural boycotts against Israel to achieve political change, had already gained momentum amid worldwide protest against the war in Gaza.

Egypt calls says ICJ advisory must be implemented

In a post on X, Egypt’s foreign ministry has called on “all parties” to the implement the ICJ’s ruling.

While not binding, the ruling calls on Israel to end its presence in the occupied West Bank and to give reparations for harm caused.

“We call on all international parties to implement the advisory opinion of international justice and help enable the Palestinian people to determine their destiny,” the statement said.

UN spokesperson details next steps after ICJ ruling

Speaking to reporters, UN deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq has said the ICJ advisory ruling will now trigger a set of procedures.

It has been transmitted to UN secretary-general Guterres. He will then give his advisory opinion to the General Assembly.

“The next step then is in the hands of the General Assembly and it’s up to them to decide how to proceed in this matter,” he said.

Israel’s former justice minister says leaving occupied Palestinian territory is in Israel’s interest

The ICJ ruling that found Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories unlawful is unlikely to change the reality on the ground, former Israeli Minister of Justice Yossi Beilin has told Al Jazeera, but the next Israeli government may come to see that a two-state solution is in Israel’s best interest.

Far-right ministers including Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir earlier reacted to the ICJ ruling by calling for sovereignty and hinting at annexation.

“If we remain in the West Bank and Gaza it means Israel will never be a Jewish state,” Beilin said. “I’m an Israeli patriot, I’m a Zionist, and it is against any idea of Israel as a Jewish democratic state to stay in the territories.”

“Since it is in our interest, I hope another government will negotiate a two-state solution,” Yossi said, adding that “this will change everything.”

Israeli settlers storm West Bank town despite ICJ ruling

Israeli settlers have attacked Palestinians and their property in the town of Huwara, in the north of the occupied West Bank, just as the ICJ issued a ruling saying the state of Israel is under obligation to cease immediately all new settlement activities and to evacuate all settlers from occupied Palestinian territory.

Al Jazeera Arabic reported that confrontations broke out after settlers attacked Palestinians to prevent them from reopening a bakery that was shut down by the Israeli military in October.

The Palestinian news agency Wafa also reported that a journalist was injured during clashes in the town of Beita, south of Nablus, while several citizens suffered from suffocation due to tear gas inhalation.

Wafa correspondents said the Israeli army used live bullets and tear gas canisters to respond to a weekly protest march held by Palestinian residents.

The occupation won't end any time soon, but at least the ICJ ruling isn't ignored by Western Media

Top UN court says Israeli occupation of West Bank and East Jerusalem is illegal

https://www.cnn.com/2024/07/19/middleeast/israel-west-bank-jerusalem-occupation-icj-opinion-intl/index.html

The United Nations’ top court said Friday that Israel’s presence in the West Bank and East Jerusalem is illegal, in an unprecedented opinion that called on Israel to end its decades-long occupation of territories claimed by Palestinians for a future state.

ICJ opinion confirms Israel is committing ‘crime of apartheid’: Oxfam

Reacting to the ICJ advisory opinion on the policies and practices of Israel’s occupation, Oxfam said the ruling confirmed that Israel “is committing the crime of apartheid in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which is one of the most serious international crimes”.

“There must now be an end to the occupation, the dismantling of settlements, and complete self-determination for Palestinians,” Sally Abi Khalil, Oxfam’s Regional Director for the Middle East, said in a statement.

“The international community cannot continue to ignore legal rulings regarding Israel’s illegal policies and inhumane practices. The UN Security Council must act now and finally put an end to the impunity that Israel has enjoyed for decades.”

US rights group calls on Biden to change course following ICJ ruling

Sarah Leah Whitson, the executive director of Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN), says the ICJ ruling “should be a turning point in Washington, where too many of our leaders still refuse to acknowledge that there is an occupation at all”.

Meanwhile, Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man, the group’s director of research for Israel-Palestine, said the ruling makes it “impossible to deny the undemocratic one-state, apartheid reality in Israel-Palestine, where half the population lives under a quasi-democracy and the other under a military dictatorship”.

B’Tselem says international community can no longer evade duty to protect Palestinians

Jerusalem-based nonprofit organisation B’Tselem has said the ICJ’s advisory opinion means the international community has “no more excuses” and “must force Israel to end the occupation”.

“The international community has evaded its duty to protect the Palestinians using various excuses, including the supposed temporary nature of the occupation and the claim that a diplomatic solution designed to resolve the conflict is being negotiated,” the organisation said in a statement.

“The release of the ICJ’s advisory opinion puts an end to these justifications, and now the international community must use every tool – criminal, diplomatic and economic – to force Israeli decision-makers to end the occupation.”

Israel’s killing of Hind Rajab may amount to war crime, experts find

The killing of six-year-old Hind Rajab, her family and two paramedics in Gaza City in February may amount to a war crime, independent experts have warned, urging the Israeli government to allow access to human rights monitoring bodies.

The UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said in a statement that Israel’s claims that its troops were not in the area at the time were “unacceptable”.

The international body said forensic analysis of the crime scene offered “compelling evidence about the location of the family’s car stranded in the line of sight of an Israeli tank and how it was shot at from very close range using a type of weapon that can only be attributed to the Israeli forces”.

It added that the absence of proper investigation and accountability five months on was “deeply troubling and may in itself amount to a violation of the right to life”.

Pentagon chief re-pledges ‘ironclad’ commitment to Israel after Houthi attack

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has held a call with Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant in the wake of the Houthi drone attack on Tel Aviv.

The attack, which killed one person, occurred about a block away from a US embassy office.

“The Secretary expressed his condolences for the Israeli citizen killed and others wounded in the attack and reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security and Israel’s right to self-defence,” the Pentagon said in a statement.

The US, Israel’s top ally, has yet to respond to today’s ICJ ruling or say what implications it may have for future support.

Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia welcome ICJ ruling

The foreign ministries of Iraq, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have welcomed the ICJ’s advisory opinion that found Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories to be illegal, saying the landmark ruling guarantees the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and the establishment of a Palestinian state.

“It is a clear ruling on the side of Palestinian people’s right to justice, freedom [and] statehood,” Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman al-Safadi wrote in a post on X. “The end of occupation is the only path to peace that will guarantee the rights and security of all.”

Iraq’s Foreign Ministry stressed that it will “enhance efforts aimed at restoring stability in the Palestinian territories and the Middle Eastern region”.

Saudi Arabia stressed the need to take practical and credible steps to reach a fair solution to the Palestinian question.

At least 50 killed across Gaza over last day

As the world responded to a landmark ICJ ruling declaring Israel’s occupation of the West Bank in violation of international law, Israeli forces continued attacks across Gaza.

At least 24 people were killed in attacks in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, according to local authorities.

Other killings included three people in an Israeli raid on a house south of Khan Younis and another Palestinian killed north of Nuseirat. Attacks were also reported in Deir el-Balah.

Israeli military bombs home in Gaza City, killing 5

The Israeli military has bombed a home in Gaza City in the north of the Gaza Strip, killing at least five people and injuring at least 10, our Al Jazeera Arabic colleagues report.

The strike targeted the Ayyad family home in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood.