Israel should evacuate settlements, pay reparations, ICJ says

The International Court of Justice, the top judicial arm of the United Nations, said Friday that Israel should bring an end to its illegal occupation of Palestinian territory, cease new settlement activity, evacuate existing settlements and pay reparations to Palestinians who have lost land and property. The Hague-based court said that Israel is responsible for “systematic discrimination” against Palestinians based on race or ethnicity and breached the right of Palestinians to self-determination. “Israel has an obligation to bring an end to its presence in the occupied Palestinian territory as rapidly as possible,” said Nawaf Salam, the president of the court. The searing advisory opinion issued by judges is not legally binding, but the decision could have expansive consequences in the international arena, including in trade and diplomacy. The court said that member states should not recognize as legal the situation arising from Israel’s unlawful presence in occupied territory, nor should they render aid or assistance in maintaining it. Israel declined to take part in hearings and described the proceedings as biased and an “abuse of international law and the judicial process.” “The Jewish people are not conquerors in their own land,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on X after...