The United Nations’ top court is hearing its biggest case ever. Monday, Dec. 2, marked the start of two weeks of hearings over what countries worldwide legally must do to help fight climate change and help vulnerable nations fight its impacts.
The hearings come after island nations, in fear of being wiped off the map by rising sea levels, lobbied the International Court of Justice for years to step in to decide “the obligations of states in respect of climate change.”
WATCH LIVE: Antigua and Barbuda, Saudi Arabia, Australia, the Bahamas, Bangladesh and Barbados continue the public hearings in the advisory proceedings on Obligations of States in respect of Climate Change.https://t.co/pmCi4dmYxT
— CIJ_ICJ (@CIJ_ICJ) December 2, 2024
The Hague-based court will hear from 99 countries and more than a dozen intergovernmental organizations over two weeks. Any decision by the court would be non-binding advice and couldn’t directly force wealthy nations into action but it could be the basis for other legal actions, including domestic lawsuits.
