Daily Times

A top Pakistani diplomat has called for the early implementation of the recent UN General Assembly resolution seeking “humanitarian truce” in Gaza in view of the continued Security Council’s failure to even call for a ceasefire to stop the slaughter in the enclave, as he underlined the role of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in conflict resolution.

“The ICJ’s role is even more vital today when threats to the peace, stability and prosperity are proliferating; when the use or threat of use of force is frequent and widespread; when occupation persists for decades; when the right to self-determination is an unfulfilled promise for many peoples,” Ambassador Munir Akram told the 193-member Assembly during its debate on the court’s work. “The enduring tragedy of Palestine vividly illustrates these formidable challenges, rendered even more poignant by the continued failure of the Security Council to even call for a ceasefire to stop the slaughter in Gaza,” the Pakistan envoy said.

“We, therefore, urge the Secretary General for the early implementation of the resolution entitled ‘Protection of Civilians and Upholding Legal and Humanitarian Obligations’ recently adopted by the General Assembly during its tenth Emergency Special Session on Palestine.”

The Jordanian-led resolution, co-sponsored by Pakistan, was adopted by a vote of 121 in favour to 14 against, with 44 abstentions. It called for “an immediate, durable and sustained humanitarian truce” in Gaza leading to a cessation of hostilities in the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. In this context, Ambassador Akram said that a 1970 international declaration enjoining member states to abstain from any forcible action that denies peoples their right to self-determination, freedom, and independence, has gained “renewed significance”.

Under international law, he said, the struggle for self-determination and liberation from foreign occupation was deemed legitimate, adding that it was the suppression of the struggle that was illegal.

“While states retain the right to self-defence, those unlawfully occupying foreign territories cannot justify their actions under the pretense of ‘self-defence’,” Ambassador Akram said, referring to the Israeli claims that it is acting in self-defence following the October 7 attacks.

Pakistan, he said, “eagerly anticipates ICJ’s advisory opinion on the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem”.

Ambassador Akram said Pakistan believed that the ICJ could and must play a pivotal role in the resolution of conflicts and disputes through unbiased conclusions based on international law.

To that end, he said, its jurisdiction should be made mandatory for issues that are on the Security Council’s agenda and where resolutions of the Council remain unimplemented. “Pakistan will continue to uphold the role and functions of the ICJ as an indispensable pillar in the international legal framework, upholding the principles of the Charter of the United Nations for the pursuit of global peace and justice.”