UN Court Rules Against Israel on Settlements

The top UN court declared Friday that Israel's settlement policy in the West Bank and east Jerusalem violates international law, per the AP. The ruling is a non-binding advisory opinion on the legality of Israel's 57-year occupation of lands sought for a Palestinian state, one that is unlikely to have much effect on Israeli policies. It could, however, further isolate Israel internationally.

• The 15-judge panel found that "the transfer by Israel of settlers to the West Bank and Jerusalem as well as Israel's maintenance of their presence, is contrary to article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention," said International Court of Justice President Nawaf Salam. The court noted with "grave concern" that Israel's settlement policy has been expanding.
• The court also found that Israel's use of natural resources was "inconsistent" with its obligations under international law as an occupying power.

• Context: Friday's hearing comes against the backdrop of Israel's devastating 10-month military assault on Gaza, which was triggered by the Hamas-led attacks in southern Israel. In a separate case, the International Court of Justice is considering a South African claim that Israel's campaign in Gaza amounts to genocide, a claim that Israel vehemently denies. Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek all three areas for an independent state.
• Israel's view: Israel considers the West Bank to be disputed territory, whose future should be decided in negotiations, while it has moved population there in settlements to solidify its hold. It has annexed east Jerusalem in a move that is not internationally recognized, while it withdrew from Gaza in 2005 but maintained a blockade of the territory after Hamas took power in 2007. The international community generally considers all three areas to be occupied territory.
• Palestinians' view: At hearings in February, then-Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki accused Israel of apartheid and urged the United Nations' top court to declare that Israel's occupation of lands sought by the Palestinians is illegal and must end immediately and unconditionally for any hope for a two-state future to survive.

(More Israel-Hamas war stories.)