The Hague Group provides some hope

JVL Introduction

As the news gets worse every day, pro-Palestinian supporters in the UK despair of any country taking decisive actions to curb Israel in its genocidal mission and ethnic cleansing of Gaza. However, it is countries in the global south who have taken the lead, first with referring Israel to the ICJ and the ICC and following that, committing to taking decisive steps for legal accountability from Israel, stopping arms sales and setting sanctions. The Hague Group was initially set up in January 2025, in the Netherlands, by eight nation states, Bolivia, Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, Senegal, and South Africa. The Group’s mission is to take “coordinated legal and diplomatic measures” against Israel’s violations of international law. By July 2025 July twelve states signed a declaration of intent at an emergency conference in Bogota, Colombia. The full statement can be read below in the pictures below.  The article below from the Hind Rajab Foundation provides more background information and highlights why the Hague Group’s work matters and why their involvement is important.

The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, Francesca Albanese, participated in the conference after which she said: “These 12 states have taken a momentous step forward. The clock is now ticking for states — from Europe to the Arab world and beyond — to join them.”

MR/LL

This article was originally published by Hind Rajab Foundation on Thu 17 Jul 2025. Read the original here.