Israel urged to withdraw “punitive” sanctions against Palestinians by 40 countries
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Salma Hossein
- . January 17, 2023
- . Update: January 17, 2023 3:30 pm
On Monday, more than 40 nations urged Israel to rescind the sanctions it had put in place against the Palestinian Authority earlier in the month because of that organization’s efforts to obtain the UN’s top court to provide an advisory opinion on the Israeli occupation.
A resolution requesting an opinion from the International Court of Justice on the subject of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian areas was adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 30.
Israel retaliated by announcing a slew of economic measures against the Palestinian Authority on January 6 in order to make it “pay the price” for promoting the resolution.
Approximately 40 UN members expressed “grave concern” at the Israeli government’s decision to punish the Palestinian people, leadership, and civil society in response to the General Assembly’s request to the court in a statement to journalists on Monday. In regards to the ICJ and international law, they maintained their “unwavering support.”
In spite of how each nation feels about the resolution, the members declared that they “oppose punitive measures in response to an advisory opinion request by the International Court of Justice, and more generally in response to a General Assembly resolution, and demand for their prompt reversal.”
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Several nations, including Algeria, Argentina, Belgium, Ireland, Pakistan, and South Africa, as well as those that abstained from voting (Japan, France, and South Korea), as well as those that voted against the resolution (Germany, Estonia), have signed the declaration.
According to a statement from the Palestinian ambassador to the UN, Riyad Mansour, “this is crucial as it indicates that regardless of how countries have voted, they are unified in condemning these punitive measures.”
In response to questions regarding the members’ statement, a spokeswoman for the UN secretary-general reaffirmed Antonio Guterres’ “grave concern” over “recent Israeli measures against the Palestinian Authority,” emphasising that “there should be no reprisal” in relation to the ICJ.
On Wednesday, the UN Security Council will have a session to discuss the Palestinian issue.
After an Israeli minister visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque, also known as the Temple Mount in Judaism, at a previous meeting this month, there was a heated exchange of words between Israeli and Palestinian diplomats.
