The new ultra-right government in Israel announced sanctions against the Palestinian Authority on Friday.
Israel plans to impose sanctions on the Palestinian Authority. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it was a reaction “to the Palestinian Authority’s decision to wage a political and legal war against the State of Israel,” referring to a resolution passed by the UN General Assembly last week. It stipulates that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) should examine the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
The decision to impose sanctions on Israel was taken at the first session of the new Israeli government’s security cabinet. The sanctions envisage, among other things, withholding funds of around 37 million euros from the Palestinian Authority and using them as compensation for families of victims of Palestinian attacks.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry said Israel’s moves “would not prevent our people and leadership from continuing the struggle and taking political, diplomatic and legal measures to provide our people with international protection and end Israel’s impunity.” The radical Islamic Palestinian organization Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, condemned the “punitive measures” in a statement and called on the Palestinian Authority “not to give in” to Israel.
Last week, the UN General Assembly commissioned the ICJ, at the request of the Palestinian Authority, to examine the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. The resolution asks the court in The Hague to investigate the “legal consequences” of “continuing violations of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.”
The ICJ should also deal with Israel’s measures aimed at “changing the demographic composition, character and status” of Jerusalem. The resolution also stipulates that Israel will stop building settlements. However, the decisions of the UN General Assembly have no legal force.
