BRUSSELS, (PIC)
European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has stressed the need for the union to pressure Israel to respect the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) recent advisory opinion calling for its withdrawal from the occupied Palestinian territories.
“Yes, it is an advisory opinion, but it is the International Court of Justice, the highest legal body of the United Nations, with a very clear message. They stated: “This is illegal, it has to stop. Israel has to withdraw its settlements,” Borrell said in press remarks on Monday upon his arrival in Brussels to attend the meeting of the EU foreign ministers.
“The answer from the Israeli – Netanyahu government – came immediately saying: ‘No, this is our land; historical reasons,’” Borrell pointed out.
“Well, you (Netanyahu) can interpret history however you want, but we are talking about international law, and you will respect international law,” Borrell stressed.
“We have to discuss what we [can] do now. Which are the consequences of this opinion of the court; how the EU is going to take this opinion inside our policy with respect to the Middle East,” Borrell said in a statement published on the EU website.
“The courts are coming to [fill] the vacuum of politics. Politics has been unable to look for a solution, but the court is not there to implement the opinion. The opinion has to be implemented by the political powers,” he underscored.
The EU official vowed that during the meeting, he would “put on the table again” the possible measures to take to deal with Israel’s disregard for the international law.
“What do we see in Gaza is a humanitarian catastrophe, man-made, of unbearable dimensions; 17.000 orphans; almost 40.000 people being killed,” he said, adding that “in order to rebuild Gaza [they] will need 10 years of taking rubble out.”
