International Court of Justice

International Court of Justice   (Court)
Formation	1945
Parent organization	UN
Headquarters	The Hague, Netherlands
Leader	International Court of Justice/President
Type	• legal • international
The international court charged with preventing war crimes which is constitutionally unable to carry out its mission as regards the permanent members of the UN security council (and their allies) which are also (more or less) the world's most active weapons producers and wagers of illegal war.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ), also called the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), which settles disputes between states in accordance with international law and gives advisory opinions on international legal issues. The ICJ is the only international court that adjudicates general disputes between countries, with its rulings and opinions serving as primary sources of international law (subject to Article 59 of the Statute of the International Court of Justice).

Background

Established in 1945 by the UN/Charter, the Court began work in 1946 as the successor to the Permanent Court of International Justice.

Current members

The ICJ comprises a bench of fifteen Judges, each elected for a nine-year term:

• President Joan E. DONOGHUE

United States of America

Member of the Court since 9 September 2010; re-elected as from 6 February 2015; President as from 8 February 2021

• Vice-President Kirill GEVORGIAN

Russian Federation

Member of the Court since 6 February 2015; Vice-President as from 8 February 2021

• Judge Peter TOMKA

Slovakia

Member of the Court since 6 February 2003; re-elected as from 6 February 2012 and as from 6 February 2021; Vice-President of the Court from 6 February 2009 to 5 February 2012; President of the Court from 6 February 2012 to 5 February 2015

• Judge Ronny ABRAHAM

France

Member of the Court since 15 February 2005; re-elected as from 6 February 2009 and as from 6 February 2018; President of the Court from 6 February 2015 to 5 February 2018

• Judge Mohamed BENNOUNA

Morocco

Member of the Court since 6 February 2006; re-elected as from 6 February 2015

• Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed YUSUF

Somalia

Member of the Court since 6 February 2009; re-elected as from 6 February 2018; Vice-President of the Court from 6 February 2015 to 5 February 2018; President of the Court from 6 February 2018 to 8 February 2021

• Judge XUE Hanqin

China

Member of the Court since 29 June 2010; re-elected as from 6 February 2012 and as from 6 February 2021; Vice-President of the Court from 6 February 2018 to 8 February 2021

• Judge Julia SEBUTINDE

Uganda

Member of the Court since 6 February 2012; re-elected as from 6 February 2021

• Judge Dalveer BHANDARI

India

Member of the Court since 27 April 2012, re-elected as from 6 February 2018

• Judge Patrick Lipton ROBINSON

Jamaica

Member of the Court since 6 February 2015

• Judge Nawaf SALAM

Lebanon

Member of the Court since 6 February 2018

• Judge IWASAWA Yuji

Japan

Member of the Court since 22 June 2018; re-elected as from 6 February 2021

• Judge Georg NOLTE

Germany

Member of the Court since 6 February 2021

• Judge Hilary CHARLESWORTH

Australia

Member of the Court since 5 November 2021

• Judge Leonardo Nemer Caldeira BRANT

Brazil

Member of the Court since 4 November 2022

Judges ad hoc

Judges ad hoc are appointed by litigant countries when their cases come before the Court. For example:

• Allegations of Genocide under the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Ukraine v. Russian Federation: 32 States intervening)

Ukraine: Mr Yves Daudet

• Proceedings instituted by South Africa against the State of Israel on 29 December 2023

South Africa: Mr Dikgang Ernest Moseneke

Israel: Mr Aharon Barak

The ICJ president (Joan Donoghue) decides which permanent Judge has to stand down temporarily to make way for the Judge ad hoc.

Problems

In 1986, after the court ruled that the United States's covert war against Nicaragua violated international law, the US simply withdrew from compulsory jurisdiction. Although Chapter XIV of the UN Charter authorises the Security Council to enforce court rulings, such enforcement is subject to the veto power of the five permanent members of the council, so the United States simply vetoed enforcement of the case, allowing it to avoid the effective sanction of the ICJ.

The court has ignored obvious evidence of illegality in connection with the 2003 Iraq War, notably when the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Commission found Tony Blair and a bunch of US government officials guilty of war crimes.

Ruling on unilateral declaration of independence

In its Advisory Opinion of 22 July 2010, the ICJ concluded that the declaration of independence in respect of Kosovo in its precise historical circumstances "did not violate any applicable rule of international law". The declaration of independence thus set a precedent that could apply to other separatist movements.

 

A Document by International Court of Justice

Title	Document type	Publication date	Subject(s)	Description
Document:South Africa institutes Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel	statement	29 December 2023	Israel South Africa Occupied Palestinian Territory International Court of Justice Genocide Convention Israeli–Palestinian conflict 2023 Gaza−Israel conflict	South Africa's 84-page Application instituting Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel

 

Related Documents

Title	Type	Publication date	Author(s)	Description
Document:A Devastating Indictment of Israel’s War on Gaza	Article	11 January 2024	Mike Small Roshdi Sarraj
Document:Dikgang Moseneke to join bench of judges in Israel-Hamas world court case	Article	5 January 2024	Kgaugelo Masweneng	Should presiding American Judge Joan Donoghue recuse herself when it comes to determining whether US staunch ally Israel has committed genocide in Gaza?
Document:Ex-Israeli Supreme Court chief Aharon Barak appointed as ICJ judge for genocide case	Article	8 January 2024	The New Arab Staff	Aharon Barak argued that the rules of collateral damage permit the killing of Palestinian fighters even if led to the deaths of children. This was approved by Barak himself in a 2006 Supreme Court ruling, as cited in a report by a Canadian news outlet.
Document:Has International Law Survived, or Has the Western Political Class Killed It?	blog post	28 January 2024	Craig Murray	Now think of this: the very next day after President Herzog made a genocidal statement, as determined by the International Court of Justice, he was met and offered “full support” by Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission and Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament
Document:ICJ to decide on emergency measures in Israel-Gaza genocide case this week	Article	24 January 2024	Al Jazeera staff	South Africa’s Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor will travel to The Hague to be present at the International Court of Justice as it rules on the Israeli genocide in Gaza.
Document:International justice: the South African complaint against Israel for “genocide” in Gaza	Article	10 January 2024	United Nations Regional Information Centre for Western Europe
Document:Israel Goes to Court for the Crime of Genocide	Article	12 January 2024	Philip Giraldi	The plan by America’s “best friend” and “closest ally” to nuke the world even has a name: the “Samson Option,” recalling how the Biblical strongman Samson brought down the temple where the Philistines were mocking him, killing thousands of them.
Document:On Gaza, Sunak's Tories and Starmer's Labour have merged into a single pro-war party	Article	22 January 2024	Peter Oborne	If the ICJ rules in South Africa’s favour then Rishi Sunak, as well as US President Joe Biden, will be wide open to the charge that they are aiding and abetting genocide. And so will Labour’s Keir Starmer.
Document:South Africa institutes Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel	statement	29 December 2023	International Court of Justice	South Africa's 84-page Application instituting Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel
Document:South Africa’s Case Was a Display of International Solidarity - We Should Support It	Article	12 January 2024	Jeremy Corbyn	At the International Court of Justice, South Africa spoke on behalf of the billions of people who oppose Israel's genocide in Gaza — and put Western governments to shame for their deplorable complicity.
Document:Your Man in the Hague (In a Good Way) Part 1	blog post	11 January 2024	Craig Murray	The fact of genocide is incontrovertible and had been plainly set out. But several of the Judges are desperate to find a way to please the USA and Israel and avoid countering the current Zionist narrative, the adoption of which is necessary to keep your feet comfortably under the table of the elite.
Document:Your Man in the Hague (In a Good Way) Part 2	blog post	14 January 2024	Craig Murray	"These two days in the Hague were absolutely crucial for deciding if there is any meaning left in notions of international law and human rights. I still believe action by the Court could cause the US and UK to back off and provide some measure of relief. For now, let us all pray or wish, each in our way, for the children of Gaza."

 

A document sourced from International Court of Justice

Title	Type	Subject(s)	Publication date	Author(s)	Description
Document:South Africa institutes Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel	statement	Israel South Africa Occupied Palestinian Territory International Court of Justice Genocide Convention Israeli–Palestinian conflict 2023 Gaza−Israel conflict	29 December 2023	International Court of Justice	South Africa's 84-page Application instituting Genocide Convention proceedings against Israel

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