Israel will be subjected to sustained legal pressure this week in the top UN courts when lawyers from more than 40 countries argue that argued that a state ban on all cooperation with the UN’s Palestinian rights agency is a violation of the UN Charter.
The five-day hearing at the International Court of Justice in The Hague was given new urgency by Israel’s decision to block all aid to Gaza on March 2, but the hearing will focus on whether Israel has illegally acted on the immunity of the United Nations as a signature of the UN Charter. Israel ended all contact and cooperation with UNRWA projects in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem in November, claiming that the agency had been infiltrated into Hamas, the contested claim.
Unrwa provides food, schooling and health services to 2 million people in Gaza. The United Nations World Food Programme said on Friday that kitchens serving hot foods are out of stock in Gaza. UNRWA commissioner General Philip Lazarini accused Israel of engineering human hunger, and said US President Donald Trump urged Israel to allow food to Gaza.
A total of 45 countries and organizations, including the United Nations itself, have requested advisory opinions from 15 strong review committees on Israeli actions. The only countries that are likely to defend Israel in court are the United States and Hungary.
Israel has filed a written defense but is not planning to submit oral submission this week.
The hearing represents the biggest test of Israeli international law’s rebellion as the groundbreaking ICJ rulings in January, March and June ordered immediate measures to allow aid to enter Gaza unhindered. In July 2024, the ICJ also discovered that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory was illegal.
Israel has largely refused to comply with the recommendation orders that accompany these judgments, adding to the crisis of trust in the credibility of the international legal system.
Palestinian rights group Alhaq said that if Israel ignores another ICJ advisory opinion, it is “ordered” that Israel’s seat in the UN General Assembly be withdrawn, and that public belief in international law “is dependent on balance.”
The legal challenge came from 137-12 votes at the UN General Assembly in December to seek ICJ advisory opinions on whether Israel, as a signator of the UN Charter, is violating the immunity and privilege that member states must grant to UN agencies such as UNRWA.
The agency not only provides assistance to Palestinians, but also operates health services and schools in Gaza, the West Bank and nearby states. Six UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem have already been closed. This is the subject of a separate national court challenge brought about by Adara, a Palestinian legal rights group.
The UN legal claims are supported by more than 1,500 documents, including the UN Security Council, the General Assembly, the UN agency that set the origins of the UNRWA, its status within the UN structure, and its operational agreement with Israel in 1967.
The ICJ is preserved by the results of the UN’s findings as the top UN court responsible for international disputes. The United Nations will be represented by Elinor Hamarskjold, a Swedish lawyer and new counsel for diplomats.
In question there were two Knesset bills handed over on October 28th, declaring UNRWA embraced terrorists and instructing the government to end contact with the organisations and all cooperation, including the supply of visas to UNRWA international staff. It has become part of Israel’s wider threat to withhold visas from staff at NGOs criticizing Israel.
On March 2, Israel suspended all aid supply to Gaza to crush Hamas, independent of its decision to freeze UNRWA. Last week, France, Germany and the UK were accused of unacceptable remarks by Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, linking the supply of aid to political pressure on Hamas.
In a version of the Israeli government’s defense, the UK’s Israeli lawyer said in a paper last week that Israel has concluded its agreement with UNRWA and that the UN and its agencies have the right to carry out sovereign territory, particularly wartime activities. Furthermore, Israel has the freedom to choose how to comply with its obligation to promote the provision of humanitarian assistance to Palestinians, and does not need to do so under the auspices of UNRWA, the paper argues.
The group also argues that the ICJ has no ability or neutrality to turn on primarily contested facts, such as whether UNRWA was fatally pervasive by Hamas, or whether UNRWA alternatives such as WFP can provide assistance.
The U.S. Department of Justice told New York District Court Thursday that UNRWA and its staff had not enjoyed immunity in U.S. courts and would overturn the Biden administration’s views. In theory, this move opens up how Hamastero victims seek compensation from UNRWA officials.
In the measure of the existential crisis facing UNRWA, the UN has appointed former British diplomat Ian Martin to review the agency’s future role and finances.
