Pro-Palestinian groups took the Dutch state to court Friday, urging a halt to arms exports to Israel and accusing the government of failing to prevent what they termed a genocide in Gaza.
The NGOs argued that Israel is breaking international law in Gaza and the West Bank, invoking, amongst others, the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention set up in the wake of the Holocaust.
"Israel is guilty of genocide and apartheid" and "is using Dutch weapons to wage war", said Wout Albers, a lawyer representing the NGOs.
"Dutch weapons are killing children, every day, in Palestine, including my family," said Ahmed Abofoul, a legal advisor to Al Haq, one of the groups involved in the suit, AFP reported.
Israel furiously denies accusations of genocide as it presses on with the offensive in Gaza it began after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.
Opening the case at the court in The Hague, judge Sonja Hoekstra noted: "It is important to underline that the gravity of the situation in Gaza is not contested by the Dutch State, nor is the status of the West Bank."
"Today is about finding out what is legally in play and what can be expected of the State, if the State can be expected to do more, or act differently than it is currently acting," she added.
She acknowledged this was a "sensitive case", saying: "It's a whole legal debate."
The lawyer for the Dutch State, Reimer Veldhuis, said the Netherlands has been applying European laws in force for arms exports.
Veldhuis argued the case should be tossed out.
"It is unlikely that the minister responsible will grant an arms export licence to Israel that would contribute to the Israeli army's activities in Gaza or the West Bank," said Veldhuis.
