Israel facing week of legal pressure at top UN court over ban on Unrwa

Israel will come under sustained legal pressure this week at the UN's top court when lawyers from more than 40 states claim the country's ban on all cooperation with the UN's Palestinian rights agency, Unrwa, is a breach of the UN charter.

- Patrick Wintour

The five days of hearings at the international court of justice (ICJ) in The Hague have been given a fresh urgency by Israel's decision on 2 March to block all aid into Gaza, but will focus on whether Israel - as a signatory to the UN charter - acted unlawfully in overriding the immunities afforded to a UN body.

Israel ended all contact and cooperation with Unrwa operations in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem in November, claiming the agency had been infiltrated by Hamas, an allegation that has been contested. Unrwa supplies food, schooling and medical services to 2 million people in Gaza.

The UN World Food Programme said on Friday that it had run out of stocks for kitchens serving hot food inside Gaza. Unrwa's commissioner general, Philippe Lazzarini, accused Israel of engineering a human-made famine, and even the US president, Donald Trump, said he had urged Israel to allow food into Gaza.

A total of 45 countries and organisations, including the UN itself, have requested an advisory opinion from the 15-strong judging panel on Israel's actions. The only countries likely to defend Israel in court are the US and Hungary. Israel has submitted a written defence, but is not due to make an oral submission this week.