A group of UN human rights experts is calling UN member states to pressure Israel to comply with a recent court order to end its illegal occupation of Palestine using everything in their power, potentially including an arms embargo and cutting of diplomatic and financial ties.
In a statement released Tuesday, the group of 38 independent experts reiterated the findings of the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) landmark opinion saying that Israel is illegally occupying the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza and committing the crime of apartheid.
They say that the opinion is an important step toward Palestinian self-determination and freedom from Israel’s oppression, and that it is incumbent upon member states to ensure it is enforced considering Israel’s long history of flagrantly violating international laws.
“The Court has finally reaffirmed a principle that seemed unclear, even to the United Nations: Freedom from foreign military occupation, racial segregation and apartheid is absolutely non-negotiable,” the group said. “May this historic ruling begin the realisation of the Palestinian people’s fundamental right to self-determination, and peace premised on freedom for all.”
Many UN special rapporteurs — experts appointed by the UN to advise on human rights — and UN working group leaders signed the statement.
Echoing longtime calls of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement led by Palestinian activists, the experts said member states must consider ending “all diplomatic, political and economic ties with Israel, inclusive of all business and finance, pension funds, academia and charities.” They also call on member states to rescind laws that ban advocacy against Israel’s occupation — like the U.S.’s anti-BDS and anti-protest laws.
On top of these actions, states should participate in an arms embargo to Israel and implement targeted sanctions like the freezing of assets on individuals and entities that are perpetuating the occupation, segregation and apartheid in Palestine, they said. The experts added that anyone who is involved in perpetuating these crimes should be prosecuted.
The ICJ’s July ruling came as a result of a years-old case against Israel, filed before Israel began its ongoing bombing and starvation campaign against Palestinians in Gaza in October. However, tools used in its enforcement, like an arms embargo, could help to combat the current genocide — if global powers were to leverage them — as well as Israel’s recent acceleration of violence and settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
As of Thursday, the 300th day of Israel’s genocide, Israel has killed over 39,480 people in Gaza, including over 15,000 children, according to the official government count. The true death count is likely far, far higher, experts have said.
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.