Amnesty International stated on Monday, 22 July 2024 in response to the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) historic advisory opinion regarding the legitimacy of Israel’s actions and policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) that “Israel must not be allowed to trample on international law any longer.”
“The ICJ has issued its opinion and the conclusion is loud and clear: Israel’s occupation and annexation of the Palestinian territories are unlawful, and its discriminatory laws and policies against Palestinians violate the prohibition on racial segregation and apartheid,” said Amnesty Senior Director for Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns Erika Guevara-Rosas.
“This is a historic vindication of the rights of Palestinians who have endured decades of cruelty and systematic human rights violations stemming from Israel’s unlawful occupation,” he added.
“The occupation is a key pillar of the system of apartheid that Israel uses to dominate and oppress Palestinians, and which has caused suffering on a mass scale. Palestinians have witnessed their homes being demolished, their lands expropriated to build and expand settlements, and have faced suffocating restrictions disrupting every aspect of their daily lives, from family separation and restrictions on freedom of movement to denial of access to land, water, and natural resources.”
“The international community, and in particular Israel’s allies, must now take unequivocal action to ensure Israel ends its unlawful occupation, starting with the immediate halting of the expansion of Israeli settlements and reversing the annexation of Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem, and dismantling its brutal system of apartheid against Palestinians. Ending the occupation is crucial to stop the recurrent pattern of human rights violations across Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.”
“Israel must withdraw its forces from all parts of the occupied territories, including the Gaza Strip and remove all settlers from the West Bank, including from the illegally annexed East Jerusalem. Israel must also relinquish control over all aspects of Palestinians’ lives, as well as ceding control of borders, natural resources, airspace, and territorial waters of the occupied territory. This means lifting the illegal blockade of Gaza and allowing Palestinians to travel freely between Gaza and the West Bank.”
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