Amnesty International Calls ICJ Legal Fatwa Is Historic Victory for Palestinian Rights

Israeli military land operations in Gaza. (Source: Israel Defense Forces)

JAKARTA - Amnesty International's Senior Director of Research, Advocacy, Policy and Campaigns Erika Guevara-Rosas said on Monday that the International Court of Justice's (ICJ) ruling on the determination of Israel's occupation as 'unlawful' in the Palestinian territories is a historic victory for the rights of Palestinians.

She explained in a statement that "the occupation is a fundamental pillar of the apartheid system that Israel relies on to dominate and persecute Palestinians, as they are subjected to home demolitions and the seizure of their land for the sake of colonial expansion."

"The ICJ ruling comes as Israel continues to blatantly and egregiously violate international humanitarian law for the past nine months, launching deadly and unlawful attacks on the occupied Gaza Strip, which have claimed an unprecedented number of civilian lives," Rosas said, as reported by WAFA on July 23.

He stressed that the international community, especially Israel's allies, must now take decisive action to ensure that Israel ends its illegal occupation, starting with an immediate halt to Israeli colonial expansion, reversing the annexation of Palestinian land, including East Jerusalem, and dismantling the brutal apartheid system against Palestinians.

"Ending the occupation is essential to stop the recurring pattern of human rights violations throughout Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory," he said.

Rosas stressed that Israel must withdraw its forces from all parts of the occupied territories, including the Gaza Strip, evacuate all occupiers from the West Bank, including illegally annexed East Jerusalem, and relinquish control over all aspects of Palestinian life.

Separately, medical sources in Gaza said on Monday that at least 23 people were killed and 91 others were injured in the past 24 hours. Gaza medical authorities confirmed that the death toll of Palestinians in the territory since October 7, 2023 has reached 39,006 people and 89,818 others were injured, the majority of whom were children and women.