Ammon News - The Royal Committee for Jerusalem Affairs Monday welcomed an announcement by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that it officially received a request from the UN General Assembly to issue an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, annexation of land and measures to change the demographic structure of the West Bank.

"The ICJ's announcement constitutes a legal, human and moral indicator that resets the compass of the world and its legitimate organizations towards the plight of the Palestinians and their usurped rights, and moves the Palestinian issue to the forefront of central issues related to global peace and security," Secretary General of the committee Abdullah Kanaan said in a statement.

"What is required today, in the shadow of the start of deliberations on the legal file, is cooperation and coordination between the various free Arab, Islamic and international political, legal and media institutions in support the Palestinians' rights and their legitimate historical claims, and to assign specialized teams to monitor and gather information and statistics on the occupation and its belligerent practices against the defenseless Palestinian people," said Kanaan.

He noted that in response to the General Assembly's recommendation and the ICJ's response, the Israeli occupation authorities imposed "unfair sanctions" on the Palestinian people, including restricting the movement of some Palestinian officials in the occupied territories and freezing construction in Area C, for fear of the consequences of any legal advisory opinion regarding the occupation of Palestine.

The committee stressed the importance of the ICJ's issuing of a legal advisory opinion in the midst of escalating attacks on the Palestinian people by a far-right government comprising leaders of religious Zionist parties, whose ideology and agenda advocates for the annihilation and eviction of the Palestinian people and Judaization of its land, as well as reassert Jerusalem's declaration as the capital of the state of occupation, said Kanaan.

Such policies, he said, necessitate supporting the demand for international protection of the Palestinian people, criminalizing the occupying power and taking serious steps towards ending the occupation.

He called for obligating the occupation government to implement hundreds of resolutions issued by the United Nations and affiliated organizations on the Palestinian issue.

Despite the legally binding nature of advisory opinions issued by the ICJ, including the 2004 opinion on the legal implications from the construction of the separation wall in the West Bank, there is an urgent need for an international will to enact the legal tools and means for implementing all decisions issued by international organizations, as they are directly related to people's freedom and the aspired-for global peace and security, said Kanaan.

He reiterated that Jordan will remain with Palestine, Jerusalem and the rights of its people to self-determination and the establishment of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, whatever the price and sacrifices.