Herzog on ICJ ruling: One-sided and ill-judged

President Isaac Herzog responded on Friday to the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which ruled that Israel has illegally occupied Judea and Samaria and annexed Jerusalem.

Herzog said in a statement that he “rejected outright the one-sided and ill-judged advisory opinion of the ICJ.”

“Their words undermine the entire notion of the process of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. It also blatantly ignores the Jewish people’s historic connection to the Land of Israel and our eternal capital, Jerusalem,” added Herzog.

The Foreign Ministry said earlier that Israel rejects the ruling, adding, “Unfortunately, the Court’s opinion is fundamentally wrong. It mixes politics and law. It injects the politics of the corridors of the UN in New York into the courtrooms of the ICJ in The Hague.”

“The opinion is completely detached from the reality of the Middle East: while Hamas, Iran and other terrorist elements are attacking Israel from seven fronts - including from Gaza and Judea & Samaria – with the aim of obliterating it, and in the aftermath of the greatest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, the opinion ignores the atrocities that took place on October 7, as well as the security imperative of Israel to defend its territory and its citizens.”

“The opinion contradicts the guiding principle that formed the basis of all the peace agreements and arrangements that have been reached to date between Israel and its neighbors, according to which the resolution of the conflict will only be possible through direct negotiations between the parties. The opinion only distances the possibility of resolving the conflict. The Palestinian Authority, which initiated the move, is not interested in peace, but in slinging mud at Israel. Peace can only be achieved through direct negotiations between the parties, and the Palestinian Authority will not be able to evade this reality by turning to international tribunals,” said the Foreign Ministry.

“It should be emphasized that the opinion is blatantly one-sided. It ignores the past: the historical rights of the State of Israel and the Jewish people in the Land of Israel. It is detached from the present: from the reality on the ground and the agreements between the parties. And it is dangerous for the future: it distances the parties from the only possible solution, which is direct negotiations.”

“Furthermore, it should be clarified that the opinion published today is an advisory opinion and it is not legally binding. The State of Israel adheres to the rule of law, and has an independent and respected legal system. It is committed to international law and it will continue to protect its citizens in accordance with international law,” the Foreign Ministry concluded.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in response to the ICJ ruling, "The Jewish people are not occupiers in their own land, including in our eternal capital Jerusalem nor in Judea and Samaria, our historical homeland. No absurd opinion in The Hague can deny this historical truth or the legal right of Israelis to live in their own communities in our ancestral home."

(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)