Palestinian factions hope for cessation of Israeli ‘aggression’ following UN court’s ruling

By Awad Rjoub

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) - Palestinian factions expressed hope that decisions by a UN court on Friday would prompt the international community to immediately stop "aggression" on the Gaza Strip and considered the decisions to have “restored the authority of international law.”

It came in statements received by Anadolu following the International Court of Justice's decision that ordered Israel to take measures to prevent acts of genocide against Palestinians and improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.

The Fatah movement, through spokesperson Abdel Fattah Doula, expressed “hope that the court's proceedings would end the war on Gaza.”

"We hope that the measures imposed by the International Court of Justice on Israel serve as decisions pushing the international community to act for an immediate cessation of aggression and the entry of aid that can save what remains of the strip.”

“The acceptance of the ICJ to consider South Africa's lawsuit against Israel stems from the compelling evidence of the occupation state committing genocide against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip,” he said.

On the other hand, the Palestinian People's Party welcomed the decision and demanded an international decision “binding to stop the aggression.”

Secretary-General Bassam Al-Salhi said: “What happened in the ICJ is important and opens the way to isolate the Israeli occupation state.”

Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization and Secretary-General of the Palestinian People's Struggle Front, said the decision “restored the authority of international law.”​​​​​​​

Majdalani hailed the decision “even though it lacked a provisional decision to stop the fire and a call from the (UN) Security Council to take necessary measures to ensure the implementation of the court's decisions.”

In a statement on its website, the Palestinian Democratic Union "FIDA," considered the “interim and provisional measures announced by the ICJ a strong blow to Israel, and a decisive message that it is no longer immune from punishment.”

The statement said the decision “constitutes a criminal stigma on Israel's record of the occupying force and a significant victory for the injustice of our Palestinian people.”

In contrast, the Islamic Jihad Movement stated that “despite the interim measures announced by the ICJ in its decisions, which in their content require the Zionist entity to stop all acts leading to the killing, these decisions did not rise to the level of demanding an immediate cessation of killing and aggression to protect the Palestinian people from ongoing genocide, which the enemy may exploit to act as it pleases.”

It added that “the court's failure to demand an immediate ceasefire is evidence of the control of the forces of global evil over international legal systems for their interests at the expense of the oppressed people.”

The International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take "all measures within its power" to prevent acts of genocide in Gaza but fell short of ordering a cease-fire.

It also ordered Israel to take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance in the Gaza Strip.

South Africa brought a genocide case against Israel to the ICJ late last month and asked it to grant emergency measures to end the bloodshed in Gaza, where more than 26,000 Palestinians have been killed since Oct. 7.

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*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala