MOSCOW

Moscow expects the UN International Court of Justice (ICJ) will give "due legal evaluation" to Israel's actions, will help to settle the crisis in Gaza and other Palestinian territories, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry said in a statement that its representative spoke earlier in the day at the ICJ oral hearings in the Hague concerning Israel's obligations to the UN, other international organizations, third countries working on occupied Palestinian territories.

"The Russian side hopes that the UN International Court of Justice, as in previous years, will give due legal evaluation to Israel's actions, which will contribute to identifying ways out of the current crisis and relaunching the peace process on a universally recognized international legal basis," it said.

The ministry said that the Russian representative, Maksim Musikhin, highlighted during his address that for the first time in history, Israel has unilaterally terminated the agreement providing the legal basis for the UN refugee agency operations in Palestine.

"Laws passed by the Knesset have been qualified as gross violations of the aforementioned Convention and key UN General Assembly resolutions," the statement said.

Musikhin also described as "unacceptable" impunity for violating the privileges and immunities of the UN and diplomatic missions accredited to international organizations in other host states.

The Russian diplomat underscored that Israel, as the occupying power, is obliged to consent to measures providing aid to the population of the occupied territory and to facilitate the implementation of these measures by all available means.

"References by Israel to considerations of national security do not constitute grounds for failing to fulfill obligations established by international humanitarian law," it said.

The ministry said that facts and assessments presented by Musikhin were supported by many other states.