Simon Wiesenthal Center Urges International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague to Resist Abuse of UN Judiciary by Palestinian Authority

February 20, 2024

Today, the Simon Wiesenthal Center condemned attempts by the Palestinian Authority to use the World Court as a venue for vilifying Israel and denying Israeli claims to historically Jewish lands, including Jewish sites within Jerusalem.

Rabbi Abraham Cooper, Associate Dean and Director of Global Social Action Agenda for the Simon Wiesenthal Center said: “Peace will not be achieved through the diktats of the United Nations or pronouncements from the World Court.  Palestinian claims about Jerusalem and its holy sites are outrageous. Jews were barred from praying at Western Wall for 19 years, Synagogues in the Old City were destroyed and the Mount of Olives Cemetery was desecrated by the occupying Jordanians. The only thing that changed since Israel took full control of Jerusalem was that all religious sites were and are protected.  As for so-called occupied territories, what part of Israel does the PA and Hamas not considered occupied?  Peace will be possible when the Palestinian Authority will eliminate its pay to slay Jews law and when Palestinian school children will be taught to acknowledge and respect the citizens of the Jewish state.  The World Court gambit is but one of many fronts opened by the enemies of peace to weaken and ultimately destroy the democratic Jewish state of Israel.”

For further information, please email Michele Alkin, Director of Global Communications at malkin@wiesenthal.com or Erik Simon at esimon@wiesenthal.com, join the Center on Facebook, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent directly to your Twitter feed.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish human rights organization. It holds consultative status at the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the OAS, and the Latin American Parliament (PARLATINO).