Pakistan on Friday joined over 50 countries in advancing its argument in the historic proceedings being conducted by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague to rule on the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories by Israel.
Pakistan was represented by its Law Minister Ahmed Irfan Aslam, who reiterated the country’s stance. “Pakistan presented its oral statement before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at The Hague on Friday in the context of the ongoing hearing on the Legal Consequences arising from the Policies and Practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem,” said a statement issued by the Foreign Office.
Delivering the statement on behalf of Pakistan, the Federal Minister for Law and Justice said that Israeli occupation continued to severely impede the exercise of the right to self-determination by the Palestinians.
“Through its illegal settlement policy, Israel is trying to create irreversible facts on the ground; perpetuate its illegal occupation, and deny access to the Holy places in Jerusalem. Israeli policies and practices amounted to systematic racial discrimination and apartheid against the Palestinians. The ICJ would fail to discharge its judicial functions if it did not stop Israel from profiting “from its own continued grave wrongs,” the statement added.
Aslam said that Pakistan has been led to “the conclusion that Israel’s occupation is unlawful and unlawfulness must have consequences.”
Criticising the Israeli settler policy, he said that through this policy Tel Aviv creates irreversible facts on the ground which make it difficult to bring an end to its prolonged occupation.
