Palestinian human rights organisations Al-Haq, Al Mezan Center for Human Rights (Al Mezan) and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) welcome the news that the Italian Energy company Eni has withdrawn from its energy consortium with Israeli corporation Ratio Energies, ending its plans to engage in gas exploitation in the State of Palestine’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The unwillingness of an international corporation to engage in trade regarding illegally obtained resources sets a precedent for more corporations to adhere to international law and end their complicity in the pillage of finite non-renewable Palestinian natural resources.
On 29 October 2023, amidst Israel’s genocidal onslaught on Palestinians in Gaza, ENI East Med was awarded exploration rights by Israel for Zone G, a maritime area off the Palestinian coast in Gaza. Notably, 62 percent of Zone G falls within the maritime boundaries declared by the State of Palestine in 2019, in accordance with provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), of which Palestine is a signatory. Israel is the Occupying Power in the Gaza Strip, and exercises full effective control over Palestine's maritime areas. The issuance of the tender and the subsequent granting of exploration licenses in this area constitutes a violation of international humanitarian law and customary international law. Consequently, corporations that obtain licenses for the exploitation of Palestinian natural gas resources are also in direct violation of international law and may be complicit in criminal acts of pillage.
As provided for in Article 55 of the Hague Regulations, Israel is prohibited from exploiting the finite non-renewable resources of the occupied territory, for commercial gain and for the benefit of the Occupying Power, under the rules of usufruct. As a de facto (and illegal) administrative authority in the occupied territory, Israel cannot deplete natural resources for commercial purposes which are not for the benefit of the occupied population and must safeguard the capital of these properties. Moreover, gas exploration and exploitation in Palestine's maritime areas flagrantly violate the fundamental right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, which encompasses permanent sovereignty over its natural resources.
In addition to the breach of Article 55 of the Hague Regulations, participating corporations are also in violation of Articles 43 and 48, by contributing to an action that blocks the Palestinian people's ability to benefit from taxation on business conducted in their EEZ. Israel, as the belligerent occupant, does not have the sovereignty or the competence to confer permanent rights in public property belonging to Palestine to corporate interests, as occupied Palestine retains full sovereignty over its natural resources. As such, any corporation that holds unlawfully acquired leases to public Palestinian resources is actively engaging in breaches of international law.
Further, Israel’s occupation in the Palestinian territory is illegal, and the International Court of Justice has held it must come to an immediate end. The ICJ has recommended that States and investment corporations “abstain from entering into economic or trade dealings with Israel concerning the Occupied Palestinian Territory or parts thereof which may entrench its unlawful presence in the territory” (paras 277-278).
In February 2024, our organisations campaigned for Eni, along with Dana Petroleum and Ratio Petroleum, to immediately disengage from Palestine’s maritime waters. On 5 February 2024, Adalah sent a letter to the Israeli Minister of Energy as well as Israel’s Attorney General, demanding: (i) the revocation of licenses for gas exploration granted in Zone G; (ii) the cancellation of any pending tenders in areas that fall in Palestine’s maritime boundaries; and (iii) an immediate halt to any activity involving the exploitation of gas resources in Palestine’s maritime boundaries, as these areas do not belong to the State of Israel, and Israel does not possess any sovereign rights over them, including exclusive economic rights.
On 6 February 2024, the law firm of Foley Hoag LLP, representing Al-Haq, Al Mezan, and PCHR sent notices to the companies Eni S.p.A, Dana Petroleum Limited, and Ratio Petroleum to desist from undertaking any activities in areas of Zone G that fall within the maritime areas of the State of Palestine, emphasizing that such activities would constitute a flagrant violation of international law.
Last year, in April 2025, our organisations represented by Foley Hoag LLP, sent letters to the Borsta Italiana and New York Stock Exchanges informing that Eni SpA is engaged in illegal operations that contravene Israeli law, maritime law and international law as well as ethical business standards. This fact was not disclosed by the Company to its shareholders, despite the materiality of this issue, and the New York Stock Exchange Guidelines to Companies to publish ESG reports which would reveal such issues. The omission amounts to deception of investors.
In response to Eni’s withdrawal from Palestinian maritime waters, Al-Haq’s General Director Shawan Jabarin stated: “We strongly welcome the news that Eni has ended its complicity in licenses for the exploitation of Palestine’s natural resources, depleting economic capital necessary for the survival of the Palestinian people, who are being systematically destroyed in Israel’s continuing genocide. This decision sends a strong message that corporations must comply with obligations of enhanced due diligence, and disengage immediately from licenses granted by Israel for the exploitation of Palestinian natural resources.”
Although Eni’s discontinuation is a step in the right direction, the two other participating corporations - British company Dana Petroleum, and Israeli company Ratio Petroleum - are still participating in the gas consortium that was licensed for Zone G, and are contributing to the ongoing occupation and exploitation of Palestinian resources. It is essential that these corporations pursue the precedent that has been set by Eni, and seek to immediately terminate their activities in the Palestinian EEZ.
This event is neither an isolated perpetration nor the conclusion to the exploitation of the Palestinian people, as currently the Israeli Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure is engaging in its 5th round of bidding for the licenses of offshore gas exploration, including within the Palestinian EEZ. Our organisations strongly condemn Israel’s attempts to license illegally administered Palestinian resources, and stress the need for corporations to refrain from engaging with trade in the matter. To do so would render participating corporations in breach of international law.