Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki told the UN's top court that his people were suffering from "colonialism and apartheid" under Israeli rule, and called on judges to order an immediate and unconditional end to the occupation, AFP reported.
"Palestinians are subjected to colonialism and apartheid. Some people are angered by these words. They should be angered by the reality we are suffering from," Al-Maliki told the International Court of Justice (IC).
Hearings on the legal consequences of Israel's occupation since 1967 have been underway at the ICJ all week, with an unprecedented 52 countries, including the US and Russia, expected to testify.
Speaking at the Peace Palace in The Hague, where the International Court of Justice sits, the minister called on judges to declare the occupation illegal and order it to end "immediately, completely and unconditionally".
"Justice delayed is justice denied, and the Palestinian people have been denied justice for too long. It is time to end the double standards that have held our people captive for too long," he said.
In closing, Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour tearfully called for "a future in which Palestinian children are treated as children, not as a demographic threat." /BGNES
