The Arab League on Sunday kicked off an emergency session to discuss “a unified Arab stance” in response to the provisional ruling by the International Court of Justice on Israel’s deadly onslaught on the Gaza Strip.
On Friday, the UN court found South Africa’s argument that Israel is committing genocide plausible, issuing six temporary measures that Tel Aviv is to enforce. This includes taking all measures to prevent acts of genocide being committed in Gaza, and to allow humanitarian aid into the besieged enclave.
“The primary objective of the meeting is to formulate a unified Arab stance in response to the recent measures issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Israel,” the WAFA news agency reports.
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The emergency session, presided over by Morocco, is being convened at the request of the State of Palestine and in coordination with Egypt and Jordan.
“The meeting aims to take comprehensive measures to prevent prohibited acts under the Genocide Convention, ensure the immediate provision of urgent humanitarian needs for the Gaza Strip, and hold Israel accountable for incitement to genocide in Gaza,” the report adds.
“Additionally, measures are to be taken to prevent the destruction of evidence related to the commission of genocide.”
The Palestinian delegation to the meeting is led by the Ambassador of the State of Palestine to the Arab League, Muhammad Al-Aklok.
Despite the ICJ ruling, Israel’s bombardment of Gaza continues unabated.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 26,422 Palestinians have been killed, and 65,087 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza starting on October 7.
Palestinian and international estimates say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
OIC Slams Suspension of UNRWA Funds
Meanwhile, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Sunday has slammed the decision taken by various countries to temporarily suspend funding for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
Nearly a dozen Western countries have suspended funding to the relief agency after Israel alleged some of its employees were involved in the October 7 operation carried out by the Palestinian Resistance.
The OIC, in a statement, said it “considered such a measure as a collective punishment that would exacerbate the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
It called on the countries concerned “to review their decision so that UNRWA may continue providing services to Palestinians refugees, and meeting their basic needs of food, shelter and primary medical care.”
The organization warned that “stopping contributions to UNRWA’s budget and interrupting its services would affect the lives of millions of Palestinian refugees and the security and stability in the region.”
According to UNRWA, it is the primary humanitarian agency in Gaza, “with over 2 million people depending on it for their sheer survival,” the agency’s Commissioner General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, said on Saturday.
He warned that “many are hungry as the clock is ticking towards a looming famine.”
(PC, WAFA)