HE the Secretary-General of the Arab Network for National Human Rights Institutions (ANNHRI) Sultan bin Hassan al-Jamali stressed the need to implement the orders of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and hold states responsible as third parties in international law, to prevent genocide in Gaza, end the aggression, co-ordinate efforts to establish safe corridors, allow aid and relief agencies entry, and co-operate in holding Israeli war criminals and their associates accountable.
This came during his opening speech at a symposium organised by ANNHRI, the Independent Commission for Human Rights in Palestine, Law for Palestine, and Human Rights Watch at the UN Office at Geneva. The symposium was held on the sidelines of 55th session of the Human Rights Council, discussing the responsibility of third party countries in implementing the ICJ orders to prevent genocide in Gaza.
Al-Jamali said that ANNHRI’s efforts in co-ordination with Independent Commission for Human Rights in Palestine continued throughout the aggression on the Gaza Strip since Oct 7, providing support through ANNHRI members, and urging Arab states to halt normalisation and force the Israeli occupation to allow sufficient humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. Al-Jamali underscored that ANNHRI on multiple occasions addressed the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to do their duty regarding the war crimes in the Gaza Strip.
Al-Jamali said that despite all of these efforts and the efforts of supporters of Palestinian rights were not sufficient to stop the Israeli aggression on Gaza, nor did they even allow the delivery of sufficient humanitarian aid to civilians in the Strip. He added that some of the High Parties that signed the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War failed to enforce International law, due to their colonial interests overshadowing the fulfilment of their legal and moral obligations.
Delivered on his behalf by Ola Adawi, Commissioner-General of the Independent Commission for Human Rights Issam al-Arouri said that Gaza civilians face dire consequences and fight for their survival in every second, adding that despite the UN Security Council passing a resolution for an immediate ceasefire last night, the Israeli army continued its attacks on civilians and hospitals, which highlights the need for immediate and decisive international action to implement the international community’s decisions on the ground.
For her part, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967 Francesca Albanese stressed that the tragedy in Gaza is shocking, adding that the settler-colonial project justified under military occupation denied the rights of Palestinians to self-determination demographically, politically, economically, and culturally, something that South Africa highlighted to the world.
In the same context, Israel and Palestine Director of the Middle East and North Africa Division at Human Rights Watch Omar Shakir stated in his speech that the organization documented last month, as did many other human rights groups, the Israeli governments non-compliance with the temporary measures established by the ICJ, pointing out that the occupation government weaponizes starvation, which is considered a war crime.
