Received warnings from major energy companies granted by Israel licenses to explore gas off the coast of Gaza about possible legal actions for committing potential violations against Palestinian maritime sovereignty and committing the crime of plunder during the war, according to the British Middle East Eye website.
The Israeli Ministry of Energy granted exploration rights to 3 companies – the giant Italian energy company Eni, Dana Energy based in the UK, and the Israeli company Ratio Petroleum – three weeks after the outbreak of the war in Gaza in October 2023.
Legal confrontation
In return, lawyers working on behalf of 3 Palestinian non-governmental organizations – Al-Haq Foundation, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights, and the Mizan Center for Human Rights – informed these companies, in letters this month, that they may use “all legal mechanisms to the fullest extent” if they continue with exploration operations and called on these companies to cease any activities related to these licenses.
The Palestinian organizations argue that more than half of the area granted exploration licenses by the companies falls within the Palestinian maritime boundaries.
These boundaries were announced in 2015 when the Palestinians joined the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the international convention that provides a legal framework for all maritime and navigational activities.
Subsequently, specifically in 2019, the Palestinians provided coordinates and comprehensive maps of this area.
Israel has no right
The letter stated: “Due to the overlap, Israel cannot properly grant exploration rights, and you cannot obtain such rights properly.”
Meanwhile, the Haifa-based Legal Justice Center called on the Israeli Ministry of Energy and the Israeli Attorney General to revoke these licenses granted to the companies.
In a letter sent this month, the “Justice” Center says that the tenders and licenses granted for this area, in addition to two other areas within the tender, violate international humanitarian law and maritime law.
Israel has not joined the Law of the Sea Convention, nor has it declared its maritime boundaries, while the “Justice” Center argues that it cannot determine these boundaries unilaterally, nor can it legally grant licenses in this area over which it does not have sovereignty rights.
Illegal action and bad intentions
The “Justice” Center says in its letter that “Israel’s move to establish facts on the ground in this way is illegal and executed with bad intentions.”
All organizations challenging these licenses recall that the tenders announced by Israel, published in 2022, made it clear to the companies that the boundaries included in the tenders had not yet been determined.
The tender specifies that during the license period, these companies will not be compensated if any part falls within the scope of the area defined by the licenses.
The letter sent to the companies states: “Israel seems determined to place the risk associated with this situation solely on you,” and the British website clarified that the Israeli Ministry of Energy and the three companies did not respond to requests for comment on the matter.
