ICJ holds new hearings on Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories

The International Court of Justice will hold public hearings on the request for an advisory opinion on the obligations of Israel in relation to the presence and activities of the United Nations on April 28 to May 2 in the ongoing case regarding Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories. Forty states and four international organizations have expressed their intention to participate in the oral proceedings before the Court. In July 2024 ICJ said that the occupation of Palestinian territories and Israeli settlements there, are illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible. The advisory opinion by judges at the ICJ was not binding but carries weight under international law. The UN General Assembly in September 2024, adopted a Palestinian-drafted resolution that demanded Israel end "its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory" within 12 months. Israel illegally occupied the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem in the 1967 ‘Naksa” and has since built settlements in the West Bank and expanded them. U.N. human rights office has said that Israel has expanded and consolidated settlements in the West Bank as part of the steady integration of these territories into the State of Israel, in breach of international law.