Israel asks ICJ to clarify that its opinion is not legally binding

Following the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) order which ruled that Israel's presence in Palestinian territory is unlawful, Israel asked the international court to clarify whether its published opinion is an "advisory opinion" and not "legally binding", and called it fundamentally wrong.

The ICJ on Friday ruled that Israel's continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory is unlawful and should come to an end "as rapidly as possible", adding that it must end settlement construction immediately and existing settlements must be removed.

Oren Marmorstein, Spokesperson of the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement, said that Israel rejects the advisory opinion of the ICJ that was published regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

 

"Unfortunately, the Court's opinion is fundamentally wrong. It mixes politics and law. It injects the politics of the corridors of the UN in New York into the courtrooms of the ICJ in The Hague," he stated.

"...It should be clarified that the opinion published today is an advisory opinion and it is not legally binding," he stated.

Marmorstein said that the opinion ignores the atrocities that took place on October 7 and the security imperative of Israel to defend its territory.

"The opinion is completely detached from the reality of the Middle East: while Hamas, Iran, and other terrorist elements are attacking Israel from seven fronts - including from Gaza and Judea and Samaria - with the aim of obliterating it, and in the aftermath of the greatest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, the opinion ignores the atrocities that took place on October 7, as well as the security imperative of Israel to defend its territory and its citizens," the statement read.

Further, it read that the opinion contradicts the guiding principle that formed the basis of all the peace agreements and arrangements that have been reached to date between Israel and its neighbors, according to which the resolution of the conflict will only be possible through direct negotiations between the parties.

"The opinion only distances the possibility of resolving the conflict," he stressed.

The spokesperson mentioned that the Palestinian Authority, which initiated the move, is not interested in peace, but in slinging mud at Israel.

"Peace can only be achieved through direct negotiations between the parties, and the Palestinian Authority will not be able to evade this reality by turning to international tribunals," he said.

Calling the ICJ's opinion "blatantly one-sided", the spokesperson said that it ignored the past, the historical rights of the State of Israel, and the Jewish people in the Land of Israel.

"It is detached from the present: from the reality on the ground and the agreements between the parties. And it is dangerous for the future: it distances the parties from the only possible solution, which is direct negotiations," he added.

Moreover, he said that Israel adheres to the rule of law, and has an independent and respected legal system. "It is committed to international law and it will continue to protect its citizens in accordance with international law," he continued.

Nawaf Salam, president of the ICJ in The Hague, read out the nonbinding advisory opinion issued by the 15-judge panel on Israel's occupation of Palestinian territory on Friday, Al Jazeera reported.

The judges pointed to a wide list of policies - including the building and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, the use of the area's natural resources, the annexation and imposition of permanent control over lands, and discriminatory policies against Palestinians, calling of it as violated international law.

The court added that Israel has no right to sovereignty of the territories and is violating international laws against acquiring territory by force and is impeding Palestinians' right to self-determination.

Israel's "abuse of its status as the occupying power" renders its "presence in the occupied Palestinian territory unlawful", the court said, reported Al Jazeera.