ICJ Mandatory Israel Allows UN Aid To Enter Gaza And Meets The Basic Rights Of Palestinians

JAKARTA - The International Court (ICJ) on Wednesday gave an advisory opinion stating Israel is obliged to ensure the basic needs of civilians in the Gaza Strip, Palestine are met.

The panel, which consists of 11 of the United Nations' highest legal entity (UN) judges, added that Israel supports aid efforts provided by the United Nations and its entities, including UNRWA, the United Nations Aid and Work Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East.

"As a occupation force, Israel is obliged to ensure the basic needs of local residents, including an important supply for their survival," Chief Justice Yuji Iwasawa said.

Judge Yuji added that basic needs include food, water, shelter, fuel, and medical services.

The opinion of the ICJ adviser has legal and political weights, but is non-binding and the court has no law enforcement force.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the adviser's opinion and urged Israel "to abide by its obligations" in accordance with the opinion, his spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.

"The impact of this opinion will be very decisive to improve the tragic situation in Gaza," Dujarric said.

The ICJ opinion found Palestinians in Gaza were not getting adequate supplies, stressing that Israel could not use hunger as a weapons of war.

Paul Reichler, a lawyer representing Palestine, said the meeting showed Israel did not comply with its international legal obligations.

"On the one hand, the court ruled that hunger as a method of war is illegal, and on the other hand, the court ruled that Israel was deliberately preventing food from reaching civilian residents in Gaza," he said.

The opinion, which the UN General Assembly requested in December, clarified the protection countries should provide for UN staff and is expected to have an impact beyond the Gaza conflict.

In April this year, United Nations lawyers and Palestinian representatives at the ICJ accused Israel of violating international law by refusing aid to enter Gaza between March and May, as Israel fully suspended all aid deliveries, accusing Hamas fighters of stealing aid.

Since then, a number of humanitarian aids have been allowed in, but UN officials say the number is far from what is needed to ease humanitarian disasters that have crossed the threshold to starvation.

The ceasefire agreed this month required Israel to receive 600 aid trucks per day. However, the United Nations said so far the number had entered far less.

In an advisory opinion earlier in 2024, the ICJ decided Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories was illegal and must be stopped immediately.

The court also stated that Israel has human rights obligations to Palestine because of its position as a power of occupation.