It is often argued that the Mandate for Palestine ended with the withdrawl of the British on 15 May 1948. In this article Dr. Matthijs de Blois cogently argues that this is a misconception under international law.
The new Israeli government intends to extend Israeli sovereignty to parts of Judea and Samaria (the so-called West Bank). The media cry out ‘illegal annexation’ but is this a question of annexation? How can one annex what you’re entitled to?
The lawfare against Israel has many faces. Next to the case pending before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) (Palestine vs. USA) and the investigation started by the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC), a communication has been submitted by Palestine against Israel to the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD). In…
The freedom of religion is being threatened under the pretence of animal welfare.
In a Judgment of 2 September 2019 the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court orders the Prosecutor to reconsider her decision not to investigate the Gaza flotilla case. The wanderings of this case through the avenues and alleys of the procedural provisions of the Rome Statute of the ICC seems to become a journey without end.
President Trump’s recent proclamation recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights has attracted much criticism. The prohibition on the use of force to acquire territory is an important foundation of modern international law, but it does not mean that wars of aggression cannot have territorial consequences.
On 8 January 2019, the Netherlands Institute of International Relations – Clingendael – has sent a Policy Brief to the Permanent Committee of Foreign Affairs of the Dutch Parliament, entitled: ‘Wie wind zaait, zal storm oogsten: bezetting en de Staat Israël’. In this Policy Brief (December 2018), the authors claim that with regard to the…
The UNGA’s Emergency Special Session about Resolution A/RES/ES-10/19 on Jerusalem as Israel’s Capital. By Dr. Matthijs de Blois, Senior Fellow, thinc. On the 21st of December, 2017, the General Assembly (GA) of the United Nations (UN) again adopted a resolution on Jerusalem (A/RES/ES-10/19), within a month of its previous resolution on the 30th of November,…
On the 30th of November, 2017, the General Assembly (GA) of the United Nations (UN) adopted a resolution on Jerusalem (A/RES/72/15). Below, some of the presuppositions and findings of the GA on keys issues are subjected to closer scrutiny, including the Temple Mount and Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. This resolution was adopted with…
… this is how Dr. Matthijs de Blois, Senior fellow of thinc., characterises the report of the Special Rapporteur of the UN on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories, the Canadian law professor S. Michael Lynk. The Report has the clear objective to heighten the pressure of the “international community” on Israel.