Bad Faith in International Treaties: The Palestinian Case as an Example

Bad Faith in International Treaties:
The Palestinian Case as an Example
Yasser Ismail Mohamed El-Dafrawy.
Department of Public Law, Public International Branch, Faculty of Sharia and Law, Al-Azhar University, Damanhour, Arab Republic of Egypt
Email: Dr.YasserIsmail.team@azhar.edu.eg
Abstract:
Stability in international relations rely on stability of treaties, and stability of treaties rely on good intention. Bad faith in international treaties occurs when one party to a treaty pretends to agree to it without any real intention of fulfilling its obligations. Instead, this party engages in actions that contradict the commitments it supposedly accepted, which is undoubtedly an unethical behavior. This research aims to define the concept of bad faith in international treaties, explore its impact, explain how to prove bad faith in such treaties, and identify its manifestations throughout different stages: from treaty formation, implementation, and interpretation to withdrawal. The study also examines examples of international treaties that clearly exhibit bad faith, with a particular focus on treaties related to the Palestinian issue. One of the research findings is that some states enter into treaties with bad faith, not to honor them, but to buy time, change circumstances, or evade treaty obligations by withdrawing. Notable examples of clear bad faith include the Palestinian case, which is a prominent example of approaching treaties in bad faith, as seen in the Oslo Accords I and II. Other cases of bad faith are evident in issues like the Nile water dispute and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.