Economic Responsibility of Third-Party States Arising from the ICJ Advisory Opinion on Palestine
Jurists for Palestine Forum – Season 3 – Panel Discussion (2)
21 January 2025 || 18:00 – 19:30 Geneva time || 19:00 – 20:30 Jerusalem time
Online via Zoom and Live on YouTube
Main Information:
- Date: Tuesday, 21 January 2025.
- Time: 18:00 – 19:30 (Geneva time) || 19:00 – 20:30 (Jerusalem time)
- Location: Online via Zoom and Live on YouTube.
- Language: The webinar will be conducted in English. Simultaneous translation into Arabic will be available.
- Registration is required: You can register here.
Background Economic Responsibility Third States ICJ Palestine
The ICJ Advisory Opinion and recent UNGA Resolution A/RES/ES-10/24 highlight the legal obligations of states to act against Israel’s unlawful occupation of Palestine. The court emphasized that states must sever all economic, financial, and trade relations contributing to the prolongation of the occupation. This includes reviewing trade agreements, investment agreements and ensuring private enterprises and non-profit organizations comply with international law. The ICJ further conveyed to the UN General Assembly the duty of envisioning measures to end the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine.
States have a duty to adopt accountability measures, including targeted sanctions for human rights violations, and to end complicity in maintaining the occupation. These responsibilities extend to enforcing corporate compliance, navigating anti-boycott laws, and leveraging investment and trade frameworks to promote justice and compliance with international norms.
This webinar will explore:
- General economic state responsibility under international law.
- Ways forwards for envisioning economic measures by the UN General Assembly.
- State responsibility under international investment law and international trade law.
- Corporate responsibility and anti-boycott measures.
- Practical steps to implement sanctions and dismantle economic complicity.
The discussion will provide actionable insights into addressing these critical issues with input from experts in law, legal practitioners and academics.
This session will critically answer the following questions:
- How does international law define economic state responsibility in the context of violations of jus cogens norms?
- What can we learn from precedents in similar contexts of decolonisation?
- What practical tools, such as trade sanctions or divestment, can third-party states employ to pressure Israel to cease its actions in Gaza? And what are the tactics needed to take such efforts forward?
- How do economic sanctions align with broader state responsibilities to dismantle systems of apartheid and occupation?
- How do anti-boycott laws affect third-party state efforts to impose accountability?
- What are the challenges and opportunities in enforcing corporate responsibility for activities that perpetuate the occupation?
The Panel Guests:
In this webinar, we bring together 5 leading experts, as follows:
- Shahd Hammori: Lecturer in Law, Kent University and Senior Advisor, Law for Palestine
- Lara Elborno: International Arbitration Lawyer
- Kinda Mohamadieh: Senior researcher and legal advisor at Third World Network
- Mark Taylor: Author of War Economies and International Law
- Tara Van Ho: Senior Lecturer at University of Essex Law School
The discussion will be moderated by:
- Wesam Ahmad, Head of the Law Center for Applied International Law at Al-Haq
To participate in this discussion, you need to register here, click
* The event will also be broadcast live on YouTube.
