Burak Bir
01 February 2025•Update: 01 February 2025
LONDON
Nine countries announced Friday the formation of the "Hague Group" to defend Palestinian rights.
Representatives from South Africa, Malaysia, Namibia, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Senegal, Honduras and Belize gathered in The Hague in a meeting hosted by Progressive International, an international political organization, to coordinate legal, diplomatic and economic measures against Israel’s violations of international law.
Following the discussions, the nine countries announced the formation of the Hague Group which it said was "born of necessity."
The group said it is grieving the lives, livelihoods, communities and cultural heritage lost due to Israel’s genocidal actions in the Gaza Strip and the remainder of the Occupied Palestinian Territory against the Palestinian people.
It noted that it was refusing to "remain passive" in the face of such international crimes.
The group said it was "determined to uphold our obligations to end the Israeli occupation of the State of Palestine and support the realisation of the inalienable right of the Palestinian People to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine."
A statement declared the intention of the group to support the requests of the International Criminal Court and, in the case of state parties, comply with our obligations under the Rome Statute, with regard to the arrest warrants for Israeli officials and implement provisional measures of the ICJ.
'We will take further effective measures'
It also pointed out its wish to prevent the provision or transfer of arms, munitions and related equipment to Israel, in all cases where there is a clear risk that such arms and related items might be used to commit or facilitate violations of humanitarian law, international human rights law, or the prohibition on genocide.
The statement expressed the group’s intention to prevent the docking of vessels at any port, if applicable, within their territorial jurisdiction, in all cases where there is a clear risk of the vessel being used to carry military fuel and weaponry to Israel.
"We will take further effective measures to end Israeli occupation of the State of Palestine and remove obstacles to the realisation of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine," added the statement.
In December 2023, South Africa instituted proceedings against Israel, claiming violations of the Genocide Convention in relation to Palestinians in Gaza. Several countries have since joined the case, including Nicaragua, Colombia, Cuba, Libya, Mexico, Palestine, Spain, and Türkiye.
Israel’s genocidal war has killed more than 47,400 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured more than 111,000 since Oct. 7, 2023.
The Israeli onslaught on Gaza has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst-ever global humanitarian disasters.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
