US policy on Israeli settlements: What's the legal basis? | UpFront (Arena)
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- čas přidán 30. 07. 2024
- US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced this week that the United States no longer considers settlements in the occupied West Bank illegal, reversing 40 years of American policy.
Pompeo said the decision was made after "carefully studying all sides of the legal debate".
According to several United Nations Security Council resolutions, the most recent in 2016, Israeli settlements are illegal under international law as they violate the Fourth Geneva Convention, which prohibits an occupying power from transferring its population to the area it occupies.
Omar Shakir, director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) in Israel and Palestine, says the Trump administration cannot erase decades of established international law.
"There is consensus outside of this Israeli government, and outside of the Trump administration, that settlements are illegal. It is as uncontroversial to say settlements are illegal as it is to say that torture is illegal. It is black-and-white international law," Shakir said.
Eugene Kontorovich, an international law professor at George Mason University Scalia Law School and the Israeli think-tank Kohelet Policy Forum, says settlements are not illegal because you can only occupy the territory of another country.
"In 1967, when Israel retook the West Bank, it was not Jordanian territory. Jordan was not the sovereign. It was not - there was no Palestinian state, it's not occupation," Kontorovich said.
In this week's Arena, we discuss the US policy reversal on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
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A well put, articulated and smart thoughts by a genuine, smart and courageous man. Well done prof. Kontorovich for dearing to speak the truth in the face of the Arabo-fascists!
Eugene speaks about law. Omar speaks about popularity.
Let the UN tell us the real name of the "West Bank", there's no place like that.
If it's Judea and Samaria, how can Jews occupy Judea and Samaria? This is nonsense....
@FEINSTEIN KUSHNER yea 😆
@FEINSTEIN KUSHNER Having a muslim name doesn't mean you are muslim.
Legal basis, lol.
Anyone who believes there is International law are fools who will be screwed by those with might.
In International law might is what makes you on the right side of law.
The only international law that matters is the one you can effect, otherwise it is a fool errand to believe in it.
Palestinian officials are fools for believing in International law, look what happened since the 1990s to the Palestinian people. Their leadership all of them should be hung in public square for selling them out to foreigners.
Judea and sumeria? Should we all go back to names and borders 2 3 4 thousand years ago? The world shouldn't have to explain to you that this is crazy. You know it too.
international law was a totally joke, because there is no law enforcement department.
Legal basis, lol.
Anyone who believes there is International law are fools who will be screwed by those with might.
In International law might is what makes you on the right side of law.
The only international law that matters is the one you can effect, otherwise it is a fool errand to believe in it.
Palestinian officials are fools for believing in International law, look what happened since the 1990s to the Palestinian people. Their leadership all of them should be hung in public square for selling them out to foreigners.
I am sick of this word "Occupied" while those who lost the war Jordan and Egypt don't claim them
Daniel Celmer Fantastic comments! Thank you.
Legal basis, lol.
Anyone who believes there is International law are fools who will be screwed by those with might.
In International law might is what makes you on the right side of law.
The only international law that matters is the one you can effect, otherwise it is a fool errand to believe in it.
Palestinian officials are fools for believing in International law, look what happened since the 1990s to the Palestinian people. Their leadership all of them should be hung in public square for selling them out to foreigners.
We also support to Israel after the USA over border issue between Israel and Arabian countries
I love how the Israeli narrative is to divert the issue to something else.
The Israeli way of re framing the narrative to "Settlements are illegal"
"International Law says occupation is Illegal. Spells it out clearly!"
(Start diverting the issue away from settlements. Cast doubt on the interpretation of international law.)
"But Israel does not believe it is occupation."
"The world consensus is that it's occupation"
(Continue to cast doubt on international consensus )
"No, they say it's occupation when you are occupying another country's land. Which country are we occupying?"
"Your high court calls it occupation."
(Highlight how much better Israeli's are than the Palestinians, underhanded warning of what might happen if the Palestinians are given any more freedom)
"Notice that a country like Israel has a high court and checks and balances. What do the Palestinians have?"
"Your own Prime Minister calls it occupation"
(Keep the conversation away from settlements and reinforce the fairness of the Israeli system and slam home the injustice of the Palestinian system)
"Because in a modern democracy like Israel you have a wide range of view,s, Palestinians only have one view"
(Congratulations, you have diverted the debate now to whether to trust an Israeli prime ministers, easy)
"Netenyahu says they are legal, which Prime minister do you want to trust?"
(Very good, just like the international community, Israel has a variety of views, even within their Prime Ministers. About now they will try to bring the conversation back on point)
"OK assume your right, lets say it's not occupation....If it's not occupation then its' Apartheid"
"There is no Apartheid, we have 1.8 billion Palestinians that vote in Israel and you say it's not enough, they are still oppressed. "
(Boom, you have won without ever having to justify settlements, highlighted Israel as a modern democracy, cast doubt about international consensus and reinforced the danger of giving Palestinians any more freedom, let alone a state, and reminded people that Israel cannot be racist if it has millions of Palestinians that have citizenship. Hopefully no one will think to correlate the Palestinian violence in Gaza and not in Israel with their level of subjugation and in all that, the word "Settlements" only came up once.)