Al-Maliki: Israeli occupation must be over and time has come to put an end to double standards

Hague, SANA- Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki stressed that the Israeli occupation must be ended, and that the time has come to put an end to double standards in dealing with the Palestinian issue, calling on the International Court of Justice to support the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination.

Speaking before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which began its public hearings on Monday regarding the legal consequences regarding “Israel’s” policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, al-Maliki said “The UN affirmed the right of peoples to self-determination, and “Israel” violated these rights through colonialism and apartheid.

He pointed out that the international community has been renouncing the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination for more than a century.

Al-Maliki explained that the occupation is displacing the Palestinians, looting their lands, and continuing the genocidal war on Gaza, as a result of the absence of any accountability for its crimes, calling for an end to the occupation’s practices and the victory of international law.

He pointed out that the right to self-determination is an imprescriptible right, and is non-negotiable, stressing that the Israeli occupation must end without conditions and the international community must hold those responsible accountable for their crimes, and achieve justice for the Palestinians who were left by “Israel” with only three options: displacement, arrest, or death.

ICJ in The Hague began on Monday holding public hearings on the legal consequences by Israel’s policies and practices in the occupied Palestinian territory, including Jerusalem.

These sessions come in the context of the UN General Assembly’s request to obtain an advisory opinion from the court on the effects of the Israeli occupation, and will continue for 6 days, until the 26th of Feb.

During the sessions, the court is scheduled to hear briefings from 52 countries, an unprecedented number in the history of the court, in addition to the African Union, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the League of Arab States.