The Palestinians announced today their intention to submit a resolution to the United Nations General Assembly in September, aiming to enforce the recent ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) declaring Israel’s presence in the occupied Palestinian territories as illegal and setting a timeline for its termination.
Palestinian Ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, informed the UN Security Council that the resolution, while not legally binding, is crucial to expedite the end of the Israeli occupation. Mansour stated, “We are tired of waiting. The time for waiting has ended.”
On July 19, the ICJ issued an unprecedented comprehensive condemnation of Israel’s occupation of territories it seized 57 years ago, calling for an immediate end to the occupation and halting settlement expansion.
Israel captured the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip during the 1967 Six-Day War. Palestinians seek to establish an independent state in these areas.
Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon, who spoke to the council after Mansour, did not address the Palestinian proposal or the ICJ ruling.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denounced the non-binding opinion from the ICJ, asserting that the territories are part of the Jewish people’s historic homeland.
Netanyahu emphasized in a statement, “The Jewish people are not occupying their own land, nor our eternal capital Jerusalem, nor the land of our ancestors in Judea and Samaria.”
He further asserted that “no erroneous decision from The Hague will alter this historical fact, and similarly, the legitimacy of Israeli settlement in all parts of our homeland cannot be challenged.”
The ICJ indicated that the General Assembly and the Security Council—where the United States, a strong ally of Israel, holds veto power—should consider “precise measures” to end Israel’s presence in the occupied territories.
