The International Court of Justice (ICJ) vice-president Julia Sebutinde has again come under the spotlight after criticising the court’s recent advisory opinion on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
The advisory, delivered last week to the UN General Assembly, declared Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories is illegal and called for the withdrawal of the Zionist state “as rapidly as possible.”
In a dissenting opinion, Sebutinde said the court should have refrained from issuing an opinion.
“The advisory opinion omits the historical backdrop crucial to understanding the multifaceted Israeli-Palestinian dispute and is tantamount to a one-sided ‘forensic audit’ of Israel’s compliance with international law,” the Ugandan judge is quoted as stating.
The UN General Assembly had requested the court’s opinion on the status of disputed territories, including the Gaza Strip, West Bank and parts of Jerusalem.
Sebutinde contended that the court’s opinion could expose Israel to significant security risks from adversaries intent on its destruction.
“It is indisputable that Israel’s continued presence in the disputed territories is in large part due to genuine security concerns as well as due to its own sovereignty claims to those territories, which can only be settled through negotiations,” she argued.
Sebutinde emphasised the unique nature of the Israel-Palestine conflict, highlighting the existential threats faced by Israel.
“It is undeniable there are states and non-state actors who have openly expressed a desire to see the state of Israel not just withdraw from the occupied Palestine territories but also wiped off the face of the earth, including from its own territory,” she noted.
The ICJ’s advisory opinion stated that Israel’s continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territories constitutes a wrongful act, obligating Israel to end its occupation promptly.
This is the second time Sebutinde voted has against an order by her ICJ colleagues.
In January she voted against measures ordered by the court, including that Israel should report within a month on its efforts to prevent genocide, and that Israel must make sure the people of Gaza have basic services.
This came in the wake of an application by South Africa in which it sought an order declaring that Israel’s military offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza amounted to possible acts of genocide.
JN/APA