9 nations form ‘Hague Group’ to push for justice and liberation for Palestinians

On Friday, nine nations announced that they have formed the Hague Group (HG) with the aim of holding Israel accountable for its crimes in Gaza and the occupied West Bank and to push for justice and liberation for the Palestinian people.

The nine – South Africa, Malaysia, Namibia, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Senegal, Honduras and Belize – intend to defend and enforce the international rulings of the United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ) and International Criminal Court (ICC), which have been repeatedly threatened by the Israeli government and its US government backers.

Israel has repeatedly flouted the orders of the ICJ to end its attacks on Gaza and to ensure full and free flow of humanitarian assistance into the besieged strip – and is still not obeying this obligation even under its supposed ceasefire in Gaza.

Francesca Albanese, the UN’s Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, welcomed the announcement:

This is absolutely the best news that has come from a coalition of policy-makers in a long time.

Let it be justice. Let’s make it real. And let’s keep growing.

The Progressive International group, which convened the meeting to formalise the new group, said its purpose is:

to coordinate legal, diplomatic and economic measures against Israel’s violations of international law [and] collective action at both national and international
levels to further the cause of Palestinian liberation.

HG’s agreed practical measures to curb Israel’s ability to wage war on Palestinian civilians include: 

• supporting international prosecutions in full cooperation with the ICC, including the enforcement of arrest warrants issued against Israeli officials in accordance with international law

• halting arms transfers – preventing the provision or transfer of weapons and related equipment to Israel, citing the indisputable risk of their use in war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity

• blocking military supply routes by preventing ships carrying military supplies, fuel and weaponry to Israel from docking in their ports – a legal obligation on all countries as part of their duty under international law to prevent genocide and violations of humanitarian law, but ignored by far too many including the Starmer regime in the UK

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