The Hague Group Arrives to the United Nations to Rescue International Law from Ruin

NEW YORK, 18 September, 2025 — The Hague Group — a global bloc of states committed to “coordinated legal and diplomatic measures” in defense of international law and solidarity with the people of Palestine — will gather at the United Nations this month in a multilateral effort to rescue the system of international law from the risk of impunity for the crimes committed during Israel’s 700-day assault on Gaza.

The Hague Group’s arrival in New York City coincides with an unprecedented attack on the United Nations itself. The Trump administration has barred senior Palestinian officials from participating in the UN General Assembly, through non-issuance and revocation of visas. This obstruction of Palestinian participation constitutes a flagrant violation of the 1947 UN headquarters agreement — and represents yet another assault on the system of international law that The Hague Group was founded to defend.

Throughout a week-long series of activities, the Group and its member states will deliberate, articulate, and champion concrete actions to end Israeli impunity:

• On 18 September, the Group will hold a roundtable in the United Nations for Permanent Representatives from across the world to deliberate a coordinated response to Israel’s violations of international law;
  
  
• During the High-Level Week that follows, the Group’s Presidents, Prime Ministers and State Representatives will use their time at the General Assembly podium to showcase national-level policies, actions, and legislation, implemented in line with obligations outlined by the International Court of Justice;

• On 26 September — while Benjamin Netanyahu, representing the State of Israel, takes the floor of the General Assembly — The Hague Group will hold a Ministerial meeting to present collective and coordinated measures being implemented at national and international levels.

• That evening, the High Level Meeting will be followed by a public presentation of The Hague Group at the New York Society for Ethical Culture, featuring Colombian President Gustavo Petro, South Africa’s foreign minister Ronald Lamola, and human rights scholar Noura Erakat.

The Hague Group’s New York interventions build on its recent Emergency Conference for Palestine, held in Bogotá on 15-16 July, which brought together representatives from more than 31 countries across Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, marking the most coordinated diplomatic effort yet by a coalition of states opposing Israel's ongoing genocidal onslaught in Gaza. Representatives of over 31 countries, including Brazil, China, Indonesia, Ireland, Mexico, Norway, Pakistan, Qatar, Spain, and Turkey, attended the meeting.

The Bogotá conference resulted in a landmark agreement on six measures, namely, to prevent the provision or transfer of arms and munitions to Israel, prevent the servicing of vessels destined to Israel at ports, ensure deflagging of vessels carrying arms to Israel, commence an urgent review of all public contracts supporting Israel’s illegal occupation, and to comply with obligations to ensure accountability, including universal jurisdiction mandates.

Signed by 13 participating governments, these measures represent the most comprehensive coordinated response to Israeli impunity to date. The conference agreed to set a deadline for states’ final decisions by September 2025, in line with the 12-month timeframe mandated by United Nations General Assembly Resolution A/RES/ES-10/24 for Israel to comply with the International Court of Justice’s provisional measures.

Since the Bogotá conference, Türkiye, Colombia, and Norway have each taken significant measures—including trade and financial restrictions—in line with the Group’s objectives.

The Hague Group was established on 31 January 2025 — by the Plurinational State of Bolivia, the Republic of Colombia, the Republic of Cuba, the Republic of Honduras, Malaysia, the Republic of Namibia, the Republic of Senegal, and the Republic of South Africa — in response to the grave violations of international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. It is currently co-chaired by Colombia and South Africa, and its six measures announced in Bogotá can be accessed here: thehaguegroup.org

Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, said:
“The Hague Group — which South Africa co-chairs — brings together states coordinating legal and diplomatic measures to uphold international law and protect civilians in Gaza. As it makes its first appearance at the UN General Assembly, what began as a small club of states seeking to defend international law is today achieving a consensus that international law is an instrument that binds us all. It is the Hague Group’s aspiration to ensure that the UN is at the centre of promoting international law.”

Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia, said:
“The Hague Group, of which Malaysia is a founding member, comes to the United Nations General Assembly to stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners in charting a course out of the moral, legal and humanitarian abyss of the Gaza genocide. It was for this solemn purpose that The Hague Group was born, and it is for this higher calling that it will continue to grow in stature, influence, and the force of its collective conscience.”

Varsen Aghabekian, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Palestine, said:
“The real substance of this year’s UN General Assembly will not be found in the speeches delivered at its great podium. It will be found in the concrete actions that states will take to halt the genocide of our people and the illegal occupation of our land in line with their humanity and in compliance with their legal obligations under international law.

“Any state that is serious about the fate of the Palestinian people, the peoples of the region and the world at large and who are serious about saving the international order from total collapse will come to New York with action plans and the needed enforcement of measures. Countries and coalitions of the willing like The Hague Group, provide admirable examples of active, constructive solidarity, not simply words of condemnation.”