Israel claims 'Palestinian hypocrisy' in new UN resolution allowing ICJ opinion
Newly appointed Foreign Minister Eli Cohen claimed on Monday that the UN resolution to seek an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice on the West Bank only makes resolving the Israel-Palestinian conflict harder.
Addressing his staff in Jerusalem for the first time on Monday, Israel’s new Foreign Minister Eli Cohen attacked the resolution adopted by the United Nations last Friday night, requesting that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) weigh in on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Israeli “annexation” and the “legal status of the occupation.”
The resolution which was approved by 87 votes, opposed by 26 why 53 abstained was decried by Cohen as “Palestinian hypocrisy."
The ICJ is the top UN court for mediating disputes between countries. Its rulings are binding, though the court has no mechanism to enforce them. Spokesperson of Palestinian presidency Nabil Abu Rudeineh saw the vote as a path to accountability.
"The time has come for Israel to be a state subject to law, and to be held accountable for its ongoing crimes against our people," he said on Saturday.
