Israel unlikely to comply with UN cease-fire call in Gaza: Law expert

GAZA CITY, Palestine

Israel is not expected to comply with the UN Security Council's recent call for a cease-fire in Gaza, according to an international law expert.

"Israel has a significant record of non-compliance with international law," Lima Bustami, director of the Law Department at the Geneva-based civil society organization Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, told Anadolu.

Bustami stressed that Tel Aviv disregards international organizations, including the UN and the UN Security Council.

"Although compliance with the UN Security Council resolution is mandatory, there are no direct measures or sanctions in case of non-compliance because it is a decision made under Chapter 6 of the UN Charter," Bustami noted.

"We will likely witness Israel continuing to commit genocide crimes in Gaza, and have to appeal to the UN Security Council to issue a new decision," according to Bustami.

The possibility of decisions being made under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, involving economic and diplomatic sanctions as well as the use of military force in the event of Israel's non-compliance with the cease-fire call, is "unlikely" due to the US veto power, Bustami said.

Underlining that the UN has failed to stop the crime of genocide committed by Israel since Oct. 7, Bustami said: "Nevertheless, this decision represents a significant development at the international level regarding the events occurring in the Gaza Strip."

"The decision indicates increasing international pressure against Israel and its allies to halt the war, as well as a shift in international approach towards Israel," Bustami added.

On Monday, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in Gaza during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

While Hamas welcomed the resolution, Israel rejected the cease-fire call and vowed to continue its war on the Palestinian enclave.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Palestinian territory since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

At least 32,414 Palestinians have since been killed and 74,787 others injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war, now in its 173rd day, has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

*Writing by Zehra Nur Duz in Ankara