Amsterdam [Netherlands], November 22 : A group of Pro-Palestinian organisations have taken the Dutch government to court, urging an end to arms exports to Israel and accusing the government of failing to prevent what they termed a "genocide" in Gaza, Al Jazeera reported.
Further, the organisation emphasised that the Netherlands has a legal duty to prevent violations of international law, including the 1948 UN Genocide Convention, in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank.
Wout Albers, a lawyer representing the coalition, said at a civil court in The Hague on Friday, "Today, the plaintiffs are here to hold the Dutch state accountable for failing to comply with international law by failing to intervene against violations of the rights of the Palestinian people committed by the state of Israel."
"Israel is guilty of genocide and apartheid" and "is using Dutch weapons to wage war", Albers added.
A coalition of Dutch and Palestinian organisations has joined forces to defend human rights in the Palestinian territory. The coalition includes three groups based in Palestine.
In a court filing made in October, the groups requested that the court "include a ban on the export and transit of weapons, weapon parts, and dual-use items to Israel as well as a ban on all Dutch trade and investment relations that help maintain Israel's unlawful occupation of Palestinian territory," as per Al Jazeera.
According to the report, the court is "looking into whether the [Dutch] state should be obliged to stop sending weapons, the state says that this decision is not up to the court to decide and is foreign policy".
Judge Sonja Hoekstra noted: "It is important to underline that the gravity of the situation in Gaza is not contested by the Dutch state, nor is the status of the West Bank."
But she said it was about "finding out what is legally in play and what can be expected" of the government. She acknowledged it was a "sensitive case".
Further, the lawyer Albers noted that "Today is not about judging political choices, but about ensuring fundamental respect for the international rule of law and protection against violations of international law."
According to Vaessen, the groups' demands build on previous decisions by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which earlier this year ruled that the occupation of Palestine is illegal.
On Thursday, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague issued arrest warrants for Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas's military commander Mohammed Deif for alleged "war crimes and crimes against humanity".
Notably, Israel's war in Gaza has killed at least 44,056 Palestinians and wounded 104,286 since October 7, 2023. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks that day, and more than 200 were taken captive, as reported by Al Jazeera.
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