Arab states and Turkey urged international judges on Monday to rule the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories illegal and Turkiye described the occupation as \u201cthe real obstacle to peace\u201d on the final day of hearings in a case examining its legal status. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has been hearing arguments from more than 50 states following a request by the UN General Assembly in 2022 to issue a non-binding opinion on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation. On the sixth and last day of hearings, Turkiye\u2019s Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmet Yildiz told judges the occupation was the root cause of conflict in the region. \u201cThe unfolding situation after October 7 proves once again that, without addressing the root cause of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, there can be no peace in the region,\u201d he said, describing the occupation of Palestinian territories as \u201cthe real obstacle to peace\u201d and urging the judges to declare it illegal. Israel, which is not taking part in the hearings, has said the court\u2019s involvement could be harmful to achieving a negotiated settlement, calling the questions posed to the court prejudiced. Palestinian factions have also come under international pressure to end their own divisions over their response to Israel\u2019s occupation, the war in Gaza and what political system might follow it. Earlier on Monday, the Arab League\u2019s secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit described the occupation as \u201can affront to international justice\u201d in a statement read out by a representative. The League called upon the ICJ, also known as the World Court, to \u201cconfirm the illegality of this occupation and unambiguously rule on the legal consequences for all parties, especially those who turn a blind eye, facilitate, assist, or participate in any way in perpetuating this illegal situation\u201d. Last week, Palestinian representatives asked the judges to declare Israel\u2019s occupation of their territory illegal and said the court\u2019s opinion could help reach a two-state solution to decades of Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has now devastated Gaza.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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