Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (Advisory Opinion)

37 Jurisdiction — International Court of Justice — Advisory jurisdiction — United Nations General Assembly adopting Resolution ES-10/14 — General Assembly requesting advisory opinion on question set forth in resolution — Competence of Court — Article 65(1) of Statute of International Court of Justice — Competence of General Assembly — United Nations Charter, Articles 96(1), 10 and 11(2) — Whether General Assembly exceeding its competence — Whether General Assembly contravening Article 12(1) of Charter — Interpretation of Article 12 — Validity of request — General Assembly’s Tenth Emergency Special Session — Whether properly seised under Resolution 377 A (V) of matter before Court — Whether question submitted to Court of legal character — Alleged lack of clarity of terms of request — Whether having effect on legal nature of question — Political aspects — Whether depriving question of legal character — Whether depriving Court of competence Jurisdiction — International Court of Justice — Advisory jurisdiction — Discretionary power — Judicial propriety — Whether compelling reason for Court not to comply with request for advisory opinion — Relevance of Israel’s lack of consent to judicial settlement — Whether advisory opinion impediment to solution to Israeli-Palestinian conflict — Whether Court having sufficient information and evidence — Relevance of opinion’s usefulness — Whether Israel’s good faith and “clean hands” argument compelling reason for Court to decline request Territory — Occupied Palestinian Territory — Occupying Power Israel constructing wall in Occupied Palestinian Territory — Whether contrary to international law — Relevant rules and principles of international law — United Nations Charter — Other treaties — Customary international law — Relevant General Assembly and Security Council resolutions adopted pursuant to Charter — Applicability to Palestinian Occupied Territory — Occupied territory — Definition — Status — Territorial acquisition by threat or use of force — Self-determination of peoples — International humanitarian law — International human rights conventions — Whether wall as routed gravely infringing human rights of Palestinians residing in occupied territory — Whether wall necessary to attain Israel’s security objectives — Whether justified by military exigencies, national security or public order 38 Territory — Status — Occupation — Occupied territories in which Israel having status of occupying Power — Customary international law — Article 42 of Hague Regulations of 1907 — Threat or use of force — Article 2(4) of United Nations Charter — Territorial acquisition resulting from threat or use of force — Illegality — Security Council Resolution 242 (1967) — General Assembly Resolution 2625 (XXV) (1970) — Whether wall tantamount to de facto annexation War and armed conflict — International humanitarian law — Treaties — Fourth Geneva Convention relative to Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, 1949 — Applicability to Occupied Palestinian Territory — Hague Regulations annexed to Fourth Hague Convention on Laws and Customs of Warfare on Land, 1907 — Customary international law Human rights — International human rights law — Treaties — International human rights conventions to which Israel party — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 — International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966 — Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 — Applicability to Occupied Palestinian Territory — Relationship between international humanitarian law and human rights law — Applicability of human rights instruments outside national territory Human rights — Right of peoples to self-determination — United Nations Charter — General Assembly Resolution 2625 (XXV) (1970) — International Covenants on Human Rights, 1966, Article 1 — Right erga omnes — Whether Israel breaching obligation to respect right of Palestinian people to self-determination — Israeli settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territory — Whether contrary to Article 49(6) of Fourth Geneva Convention, 1949 — Legal validity — Whether wall tantamount to de facto annexation — Whether altering demographic composition Human rights — Rights of Palestinians residing in territory occupied by Israel — Whether Israel’s routed wall gravely infringing those rights — Destruction or requisition of properties — Demographic changes — Right to freedom of movement — Right to work — Right to adequate standard of living — Right to health — Right to education — Hague Regulations, 1907, Articles 46 and 39 52 — Fourth Geneva Convention, 1949, Articles 53 and 49(6) — Security Council Resolutions 446, 452 (1979) and 465 (1980) — International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966, Article 12(1) — International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966, Articles 6, 7, 11, 12, 13 and 14 — United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989, Articles 16,24,27 and 28 — Whether Israel in breach of obligations under international law Terrorism — War and armed conflict — Israel claiming wall to protect from terrorist attacks — Self-defence — Article 51 of United Nations Charter — Whether relevant — Security Council Resolutions 1368 and 1373 (2001) — Whether Israel could invoke — State of necessity — Whether construction of wall only way for Israel to safeguard essential interest against grave and imminent peril State responsibility — Legal consequences arising from Israel’s construction of wall — Whether responsibility of Israel engaged under international law — Whether Israel bound to comply with its international obligations — Whether Israel obliged to put an end to any internationally wrongful act — Obligations upon all States under United Nations Charter and international law — Additional obligation upon States parties to Fourth Geneva Convention, 1949 — Obligation upon both Israel and Palestine to observe rules of international humanitarian law — Protection of civilian life — Requirement of implementation in good faith of all relevant Security Council resolutions Damages — Reparation — Whether Israel under obligation to make reparation for all damage caused by construction of wall — Customary international law — Restitution in kind — Payment of equivalent sum — Compensation in accordance with applicable international law rules War and armed conflict — Israeli-Palestinian conflict threatening international peace and security — United Nations Charter — United Nations — Organs — General Assembly — Security Council — Article 12 of United Nations Charter — Whether any further action required — Requirement of implementation in good faith of all relevant Security Council resolutions — Security Council Resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973) — “Roadmap” approved 40 by Security Council Resolution 1515 (2003) — Negotiated solution to outstanding problems — Establishment of Palestinian State — Peace and security in Middle East region