The Hague Group, a bloc of countries from around the world, are meeting for an emergency summit about Israel’s violations of international law. The meeting is co-hosted by Colombia and South Africa, and according to the group, seeks to:
halt the genocide in Gaza.
Meanwhile, in spite of this principled action from majority Global South states, the EU disgraced itself entirely. Twenty seven foreign ministers from the EU refused to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement in a move that Amnesty International have called a:
cruel and unlawful betrayal.
Hague Group assembles
There are eight member states of the Hague Group: Colombia and South Africa as co-chairs, Bolivia, Cuba, Honduras, Malaysia, Namibia, and Senegal. Each of the member nations are located in the global south. Given how fond Western states are of bleating about how they’re the civilised heartbeat of the globe, how they possess freedom, democracy, and principles unseen except in majority white states, their lack of dominance at the summit is notable.
Middle East Eye reported that:
In addition to Colombia and South Africa, states attending the summit include Algeria, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Chile, China, Cuba, Djibouti, Honduras, Indonesia, Iraq, Ireland, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Mexico, Namibia, Nicaragua, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Portugal, Spain, Qatar, Turkey, Slovenia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The member states will, alongside the other attendees:
announce concrete actions to enforce international law through coordinated state action — to end the genocide and ensure justice and accountability.
Speaking at the summit of the conference Francesca Albanese said:
For too long, international law has been treated as optional – applied selectively to those perceived as weak, ignored by those acting as the powerful.
Indeed, the inaction of Western powers in sanctioning Israel has created a two tier international rule of law. Israel has been allowed to operate with impunity in committing genocide across Palestine. Albanese continued:
This double standard has eroded the very foundations of the legal order. That era must end. The law must either be universal, or it will cease to mean anything at all. No one can afford this selective approach.
Special Rapporteur Albanese was forceful in her condemnation of complicit states:
Here in Bogota, a growing number of states have the opportunity to break the silence and revert to a path of legality by finally saying: enough. Enough impunity. Enough empty rhetoric. Enough exceptionalism. Enough complicity.
The time has come to act in pursuit of justice and peace – grounded in rights and freedoms for all, and not mere privileges for some, at the expense of the annihilation of others.
EU depravity
The EU’s refusal to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement is the epitome of rights and freedom for some, and annihilation for others. The trade agreement makes Israel the EU’s third-biggest trading partner in the Mediterranean. In 2024, the trade in goods between the EU and Israel totalled $42.6 billion. The EU is undoubtedly in a position to use economic sanctions to deter Israel’s genocide against Palestine.
Instead, these craven and complicit states:
agreed to “keep a close watch” on Israel’s compliance with a recent agreement to improve humanitarian aid access into Gaza.
At this stage of the conflict, when so many Palestinians themselves and organisations working in the area have documented the cruelty and depraved conduct of Israel, ‘keeping a close watch’ is all these morally bankrupt states have done. They sit back and watch, as Israel chases Palestinians across the country with bombs, demolishing homes, hospitals, schools. The EU has done nothing but watch as children have been blown to pieces.
Now, they’ve bravely resolved to watch and do nothing as Israel’s siege starves Palestinians. People are being killed queuing for food and water – most notably children.
Nevertheless, diplomat Kaja Kallas said after the decision:
The aim is not to punish Israel, the aim is to improve the situation in Gaza.
How exactly they aim to improve the situation in Gaza without stopping Israel slaughtering and starving Palestinians is unclear.
Of course, were it Russia aggressing Ukraine, then the useless EU would trip over themselves in their rush to roll out economic and diplomatic sanctions, while their citizens collectively carried out a cultural boycott. When it’s not Arabs being killed, there’s no difference between punishment and aid. After all, so precious is (white) human life that we must all band together to show we cannot abide the killing of civilians.
‘Cruel and unlawful betrayal’
The EU’s decision has, of course, gone largely unreported across Western media. Unfortunately for them, some of us are paying attention. Amnesty International’s Secretary General Agnès Callamard said:
The EU’s refusal to suspend its agreement with Israel is a cruel and unlawful betrayal – of the European project and vision, predicated on upholding international law and fighting authoritarian practices, of the European Union’s own rules and of the human rights of Palestinians.
Whilst EU member states clearly don’t care about the atrocities Israel is committing against Palestinians, they have claimed to care about the European project. We’ve repeatedly been told that project EU is a question of strict adherence of international law, in order to promote peace and security. However, as Callamard said:
The EU’s own review has clearly found that Israel is violating its human rights obligations under the terms of the Association Agreement. Yet, instead of taking measures to stop it and prevent their own complicity, member states chose to maintain a preferential trade deal over respecting their international obligations and saving Palestinian lives.
This is more than political cowardice. Every time the EU fails to act, the risk of complicity in Israel’s actions grows. This sends an extremely dangerous message to perpetrators of atrocity crimes that they will not only go unpunished but be rewarded.
Collapse of international rule of law – but the Hague Group is pushing back
The EU and other Western states may not realise it yet, but their inaction over Israel’s genocide in Palestine has irrevocably weakened their global standing and pretence at moral superiority. The Hague Group have shown them up for the useful idiots that they are. How are any states from the global south to take this group of charlatans remotely seriously when they bleat about justice and safety?
Israel is unleashing hell on Palestine, and it is doing so with the explicit and tacit support of Western powers. Were it not for the Hague Group, Palestinians would be truly alone.
Featured image via the Canary
This post was originally published on Canary.