Saudi Arabia Attends ICJ Sitting on Humanitarian Situation in Palestinian Territory

Saudi Arabia participated in the public sitting of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, Netherlands, on the request for an advisory opinion on "the Obligations of Israel in Relation to the Presence and Activities of the United Nations, Other International Organizations and Third States in and in Relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territory."
 Director-General of the Legal Affairs Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Mohamed Alnasser represented Saudi Arabia at the sitting. He delivered a statement to reiterate Saudi Arabia's demand that Israel adhere to the provisions of international humanitarian law as an occupying power and provide the basic needs of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territories, including food, water, shelter, and medical supplies.
 "Israel must respect, protect, and fulfill the fundamental human rights of the Palestinian people in the occupied Palestinian territory," Alnasser emphasized, citing Israel's international human rights law obligations. He underscored that Israel's obstruction of efforts by international organizations, including the United Nations and third states, in providing essential needs to the Palestinian people "entails a clear violation of Israel's human rights obligations."
 Alnasser pointed out that the United Nations Charter imposes an obligation on Israel to cooperate in good faith with the United Nations and its agencies, including UNRWA. He underlined Israel's duty to allow and encourage those willing to offer humanitarian and developmental assistance that enhances the capacity of the Palestinian people to achieve the right to self-determination. He stressed the necessity to respect this right as a peremptory norm of international law, which is central to the question before the court.