Israel attacking integrity of international law, ICJ told

Israel appears set on destroying the framework created to ensure compliance with international law in a way that will have profound consequences that reverberate far beyond Palestine, the international court of justice has heard.

- Patrick Wintour

The warning was made at the start of five days of proceedings in The Hague that may prove critical to Israel's future within the world body. The UN's top court will hear from dozens of nations and organisations in order to draw up an advisory opinion on Israel's humanitarian obligations to Palestinians more than 50 days into its total blockade on aid entering Gaza.

Israel is not participating but has submitted oral evidence claiming its decision last October to end all cooperation with Unrwa, the UN relief agency for Palestinians, was necessary because of infiltration by Hamas.

Blinne Ni Ghrálaigh, counsel for the Palestinian state, described Israel's actions as "antithetical to a peace-loving state", saying the restrictions on "the fundamental rights of the Palestinian people, its attacks on the United Nations and on UN officials, property and premises, its deliberate obstruction of the organisation's work, and its attempt to destroy an entire UN subsidiary organ are unprecedented in the history of the organisation".

They amounted to "a fundamental repudiation by Israel of its charter obligations owed both to the organisation and to all UN members and of the international rule of law".