Does Israel have the right to prohibit a UN agency from working in the occupied Palestinian territories? The UN has asked the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to issue a ruling. Forty-five countries and international organisations have submitted their written statements ahead of hearings that will open on 28 April in The Hague.
A request for an advisory opinion was submitted to the ICJ by the United Nations General Assembly following Israel’s ban on the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) on 28 October 2024, both in Israeli territory and in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The resolution passed on 19 December 2024 calls on the ICJ to clarify ‘what are the obligations of Israel, as an occupying Power and as a member of the United Nations, in relation to the presence and activities of the United Nations (…) in the Occupied Palestinian Territory’.
The law adopted by the Israeli Parliament to ban UNRWA is a first in the history of the United Nations and international law. It contravenes the 1946 Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, to which Israel adheres.
UNRWA determined to continue its operations
During a press briefing in Brussels on 26 March, Juliette Touma, UNRWA’s Director of Communications, stated that the agency faces “increasing pressure” to cease its operations. However, UNRWA remains on the ground and continues to provide healthcare, education and humanitarian aid. “During the ceasefire in Gaza, from 19 January to 2 March, UNRWA provided food to 2 million people in Gaza and reopened shelters”.
The ban on UNRWA is not without consequences. The latest example, given by Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA’s Commissioner-General, is that on 8 April, Israeli officials from the Jerusalem municipality, accompanied by security forces, forcibly entered six UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem to order their closure within 30 days.
Some 800 girls and boys are directly affected. They will probably not be able to finish their school year, even though UNRWA schools are protected by United Nations privileges and immunities. “These illegal closure orders come in the wake of Knesset legislation seeking to curtail UNRWA operations,” said Stéphane Dujarric, the UN Secretary-General’s spokesperson, at a press briefing on 9 April.
45 states and international organisations have submitted written statements
Among the 45 states and international organisations that have submitted written statements as part of this procedure are the UN Secretary-General and the main parties concerned, Israel and Palestine.
Three major powers, the United States, the Russian Federation and China, are also participating, alongside important players in the Middle East: Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran, the League of Arab States and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
Eleven European countries – Belgium, Spain, France, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland and Slovenia – also sent their written statements.
Other proceedings concerning Israel before the ICJ
Among the states interested in this advisory proceeding are several from the 15 countries that are participating – in a separate case – in the ICJ complaint by South Africa against Israel for genocide in Gaza. This group includes Belgium, Spain, Ireland, Turkey, Chile, and Bolivia.
It was in the context of this complaint that the ICJ asked Israel on 24 May 2024 to suspend its military operation in Rafah, an order that Israel did not respect. The proceedings are still ongoing.
Another advisory opinion had been requested from the ICJ by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2022, before the current conflict, on ‘the legal consequences of Israel’s policies and practices in the Occupied Territories, including East Jerusalem’.
Historic hearings were held in February 2024, with a record 52 countries and three international organisations participating. In its opinion issued on 19 July 2024, the ICJ ruled that Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territories, defined as “a single territorial unit (…) comprising the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza”, are not in accordance with international law.
This illegal activity requires Israel “to bring an end to its presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory as rapidly as possible, (…) and to provide full reparation for the damage caused by its internationally wrongful acts to all natural or legal persons concerned.”
This advisory opinion, which is not legally binding, is an addition to the existing jurisprudence and indicates the direction of the application of international law.
Additional links:
- The UN and the Crisis in the Middle East: latest UN news
- October 2024 – South Africa vs Israel: 14 other countries intend to join the ICJ case
- July 2024 – International justice: the ICJ demands “the end of Israel’s presence” in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
- May 2024 – ICJ: “Israel must immediately halt its military offensive in Rafah”
- February 2024 – oPt: Last Days of Hearings at the International Court of Justice
- February 2024 – Occupied Palestinian territories: first days of hearings at the ICJ
- January 2024 – International justice: the South African complaint against Israel for “genocide” in Gaza
- November 2023 – Israel-Palestine: The Role of International Justice
- UNRIC Backgrounder: Gaza | Middle East