Saudi Arabia tells ICJ Israel considers itself above all laws

A representative of Saudi Arabia told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) yesterday that Israel considers itself above all laws and refuses to comply with the court’s advisory opinion on halting its aggression against the Gaza Strip.

Mohamed Saud Alnasser, who is the director of legal affairs at the kingdom’s Foreign Ministry, condemned Israel’s “flagrant violations of international law” in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as Gaza, adding that Tel Aviv’s unjustified blockade on Gaza, reflects brutality against civilians in the besieged Strip.

“Less than a year ago, the court heard that Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied territory, including its settlement practices, its continued occupation and its annexation of parts of that territory are flagrant violations of international law that must be brought to an end as a matter of urgency,” he said.

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“Sadly, but predictably, Israel chose to ignore the court’s ruling, showing it considered itself above the law.”

Alnasser referred to Israel’s “hideous conduct” in Gaza, adding that the “most ruthless application has been the siege conditions imposed over the Gaza Strip since October 2023,” and that the worsening situation there has turned the Strip into a graveyard for thousands of innocent people

Alnasser stressed that preventing the entry of relief supplies into Gaza is a violation of all international conventions, calling on Israel to facilitate the work of humanitarian organisations, especially the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), in Gaza and the West Bank.

He explained that the International Commission of Inquiry had disproved the Israeli allegations against UNRWA employees, and called for protection for workers in humanitarian agencies and organisations in the occupied Palestinian territories from Israeli violations.

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