Nicaragua Raises Its Voice for Palestine in Another Landmark Case at the ICJ

September 3, 2026

Nicaragua Raises Its Voice for Palestine in Another Landmark Case at the ICJ

By Becca Renk Foster

[Becca Renk Foster is originally from Idaho, USA. For 25 years, she has lived and worked in sustainable community development in Nicaragua. She coordinates the work of Casa Benjamín Linder in Managua and is part of the Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition.]

Against the backdrop of Israel’s renewed attacks on Palestine, the World Court is set to begin public hearings on September 7th on Nicaragua’s legal proceedings against Germany for aiding and abetting genocide in Gaza by providing weapons to Israel. During its arguments, Nicaragua will certainly avail itself of its experience taking the most powerful nation in the world to the International Court of Justice…and winning—in 1986. Nicaragua Condemns Attacks “Nicaragua expresses its unchanging solidarity with the heroic Palestinian people, who continue to face suffering, occupation, destruction and displacement perpetrated by the Zionist government of Israel and its occupying forces,” reads a statement from Nicaragua’s government released on July 29th. The declaration condemned Israel’s renewed attacks, calling them an “unacceptable escalation of violence against the Palestinian people,” and repudiated “the continuous, growing violations of international and humanitarian law, as well as Israel’s attempts to criminalize the Palestinian population who seek only to protect their families, homes and livelihoods.” This statement is Nicaragua’s most recent demonstration of solidarity with Palestine in its long history of friendship with the Palestinian people: Nicaragua was the first Central American country to establish diplomatic ties with Palestine. In 1980, just one year after the triumph of the Sandinista Popular Revolution, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat made an historic visit to Nicaragua which marked the beginning of diplomatic relations between the State of Palestine and the Republic of Nicaragua. Nicaragua Leads South-South Solidarity From that time, the two countries have maintained friendship which has strengthened since the Israeli genocide in Gaza began. On the global stage, Nicaragua has been at the forefront of the south-south mobilization of support for Palestine: reaffirming solidarity with Palestine on October 7, 2023; sending its foreign minister to Ramallah to meet with Palestinian authorities in December 2023; signing on in February 2024 as the first of 18 countries to intervene on behalf of South Africa in its case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ); and on March 1, 2024, bringing charges against Germany at the ICJ for aiding and abetting genocide by providing political, financial and military support to Israel and by defunding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Nicaragua’s pressure on Germany at the World Court has already leveraged positive results for Palestine: as of April 2024, Germany reversed its policy on stopping UNRWA funding to Gaza and declared it has resumed aid. This past March, Germany’s foreign ministry announced it was withdrawing support for Israel in the South Africa case in order to focus on its defense in the legal proceedings initiated by Nicaragua. Nicaragua v. United States Nicaragua, a country the size of New York state with a population of just under seven million people, is one of the countries in the world with the most experience in the ICJ. In fact, in 1986 the World Court ruled in Nicaragua’s favor in a landmark case against the United States over the Contra War. Immediately following the ousting of U.S.-backed dictator Anastasio Somoza by young Sandinista revolutionaries in 1979, the U.S. created, financed and directed a “counterrevolutionary” force known as the contras. While the Nicaraguan Sandinista Revolution taught its illiterate population to read and write and made health care and education free, it was simultaneously fighting U.S.-armed contra guerillas. The contras attacked civilian targets that represented the gains of the Revolution – health care workers, teachers, schools and farming cooperatives – killing 50,000 in country of just three million people at the time. “The situation progressed so much that in 1983 there was an attack in our main port of Corinto and over 1.6 million gallons of gas exploded,” remembered Ambassador Carlos Argüello, Nicaraguan’s Agent to the International Court of Justice, during a video conference from the Netherlands on May 4, 2024. “This act was carried out by the CIA under the direction of the U.S.” A few months later, the U.S. placed underwater explosive devices in Nicaraguan ports without notifying other nations; a UK national was killed. “It was astounding,” remembered Argüello. “Publicly in Congress they were discussing how much money to give the contras, and there was no question of international law…. So that is why we went to the World Court, because it wasn’t simply a matter of the most powerful nation doing whatever it wants, [we needed] to remind the world that international law exists.” In 1986 the ICJ handed down its verdict in the case of Nicaragua vs. the United States, convicting the U.S. of violating the fundamental principles of general and customary international law, making the U.S. the only country in the world to be convicted by the ICJ of massive human rights violations. The Court ordered the U.S. to pay reparations, which it has never done. To this day, the U.S. has an outstanding debt to the Nicaraguan people estimated at $12 billion in 1988, now worth at least $36.5 billion. Nicaragua Case a Turning Point Speaking on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the ICJ ruling in the Nicaragua case, Augusto Zamora Rodríguez, former Nicaraguan Ambassador to Spain and professor of international law who worked on Nicaragua v. United States, explained that the case marked a turning point in international law. “[It] left the United States stripped of legal arguments. And it stripped them bare forever, because what was said about Nicaragua in 1986 applies today to Iran; it applies today to countries under attack, such as so many in Africa and some in Latin America. And it also serves to remind governments that applaud these kinds of policies that they are absolutely illegal—not because someone says so voluntarily or out of conviction, but because the United Nations’ principal judicial body said so.” Zamora went on to highlight that the precedent set in the Nicaragua case can be availed of by other countries suffering unjust attacks.  “In that sense, our country, the Revolution, and the Sandinista government rendered an enormous service not only to the country but also to the international community and to the world’s poor. We left them with a ruling they can rely on, and I am certain that in the case of the genocide in Gaza—the barbarity that Israel has been perpetrating against the Palestinian people for 80 years—when the Court rules on the genocide case, it will cite the Nicaragua ruling more than once.” In Zamora’s view, the Nicaragua case is more pertinent than ever. “The Nicaragua ruling has not only lost none of its relevance,” he said, “but continues to gain in significance and has established an essential legal framework for the defense of the rights of peoples and weak nations—who are, in fact, the ones who truly need to invoke this right…. It is already a different world, but that world, I believe, will find in this Court’s ruling a quite competent and solid framework for building the new multipolar order that international society needs.” Another Landmark Case Similarly, the case Nicaragua has brought against Germany in the ICJ is also now being described as a “landmark case.” Nicaragua was unable to bring charges against the U.S. for aiding the Gaza genocide because the US withdrew from accepting the compulsory jurisdiction of the ICJ. Bringing charges against Germany, however, is significant not only because Germany remains Israel’s second-largest arms supplier after the U.S., but also because Germany’s far right is currently seeking even closer ties with Israel: recently Germany’s upper house approved a bill to criminalizing the denial of Israel’s “right to exist,” punishable by up to five years in prison. Although any legal proceedings in the World Court advance very slowly, there is now new movement in Nicaragua v. Germany: on August 1st, the International Court of Justice announced that it will hold public hearings September 7-10 on preliminary objections raised by Germany challenging jurisdiction and admissibility in the case brought by Nicaragua. Despite being a small nation from the global south, Nicaragua will certainly be drawing on its long experience with the ICJ and its consistent adherence to international law to defend the Palestinian people at the World Court. “Nicaragua’s people will continue to raise their voices in favor of the Palestinian cause and cry out for justice and peace, for the freedom and dignity of the Palestinian people,” read Managua’s recent statement. “The two-state solution is an international demand and the only way to a just and lasting peace.” Briefs By Nan McCurdy Constitutional Amendments Approved in First Legislative Session On September 1, during a formal session held at the “Juan José Quezada” Plaza in the city of León, members of the National Assembly approved the Law on Partial Reform of the Political Constitution of the Republic of Nicaragua in the first legislative session. [It must also be approved in a second legislative session in 2027.] The amendments were consulted with all sectors of society over 36 days. The president of the National Assembly, Dr. Gustavo Porras, explained that the bill aims to amend Articles 12, 47, 122, 123, 130, 132, 142, 143, 150, 152, 155, 164, and 166 of the Constitution, providing legal tools that will guarantee stability, security, and peace to effectively continue to wage the battle against poverty. These amendments do not permit the application in Nicaragua of extraterritorial laws by any State, group of States, or international organization. They prohibit those who have participated in coup attempts, treason, or have requested foreign military intervention or interference such as sanctions or external financing or any other violation of the fundamental principles of the Constitution of Nicaragua, from holding elected office. The amendments establish seven-year terms of office for elected officials, officials appointed by the President, and those elected or ratified by the National Assembly. They also establish a seven-year term for the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The amendments strengthen the powers of the Supreme Electoral Council to verify, sanction, and revoke the legal status of political parties or candidates that violate constitutional principles. (La Primerisima, 1 September 2026) National Pride! The Junior National Baseball Team Welcomed as Heroes The players on the junior national team that competed in the Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA, United States, were welcomed as true heroes at Augusto C. Sandino International Airport. Sports officials, led by Maurice Ortega Murillo, Delegate of the Presidency for the Promotion and Development of Sports, welcomed the baseball players who, with their first three victories, inspired an entire nation to dream, ultimately finishing third in the tournament’s overall standings. Nicaragua lost to Japan which then lost to champions Curacao. The team won three games and lost two. At the welcome ceremony, the children presented Ortega Murillo with a baseball signed by each of them, a token of their gratitude to the authorities for the strong support they receive both locally and internationally. The reception was attended by officials from the Nicaraguan Institute of Sports (IND), leaders of the Alexis Argüello Sports Movement, representatives of the Nicaraguan Baseball Federation (FENIBA), and the players’ families. “We are welcoming back to their country, our national baseball team that participated in the Williamsport World Youth Championship and achieved a historic feat for our country in this category by reaching levels we had never reached before—a team that made us feel very proud to be Nicaraguans, a team that filled all of us—the people and our families—with pride and joy,” said Maurice. “We proved that a small country has a big heart—more than anything else in sports. We placed third internationally—it’s not easy—and thank God the kids did everything they could to achieve that feat. We were missing two players who were key to this team; however, the rest found the courage to carry on and dedicated their victories to those players and to our country. See photos: https://www.el19digital.com/articulos/ver/181434-orgullo-patrio-reciben-como-heroes-a-la-seleccion-infantil-de-beisbol- (El 19, 31 August 2026) [US news outlets reported that two players from the Nicaragua team were unable to obtain travel visas from the US embassy in Managua to travel to Williamsport. Little League International said the players would not be replaced, so Nicaragua competed with only 12 rostered players instead of the usual 14 making their third place finish even more remarkable.] Government Has Built 155,155 Homes in 19 Years The Sandinista government has promoted the construction and renovation of 155,155 homes from 2007 through July 2026, said Gabriela Palacios, co-director of the Institute for Urban and Rural Housing (INVUR). She emphasized that this has been a challenging undertaking, above all to coordinate the efforts of local municipalities and the central government. “Today we have the flexibility not only to provide subsidies or down-payment assistance for projects developed by real estate developers or those being carried out comprehensively, but also to allocate subsidies nationwide for the development of new housing and improvements on privately owned lots—and we’re working on this with the municipal governments,” she said. She noted that this has made it possible to reach more than 98% of the national territory, promoting housing as the restoration of a right—in line with Co-President Daniel Ortega’s message to ensure that no Nicaraguan is left without a home. Palacios announced that the institution is ready to serve more than 2,000 people during the Eighth National Housing Fair, offering flagship housing projects and numerous economic benefits for families. Palacios emphasized that the government is maintaining the incentives provided for in the legal framework for affordable housing, such as: a subsidy of $3,500 for homes valued at up to $30,000, and a subsidy of $2,000 for properties valued at up to $40,000. The interest rate subsidy also remains in effect: a reduction in the mortgage interest rate for a period of 10 years, which guarantees fixed and affordable monthly payments. Additionally, recipients are exempt from 15% of the Value-Added Tax on construction materials for projects certified by INVUR. The co-director clarified that these benefits are intended for families who do not own their own home; therefore, among the additional requirements, applicants will be asked to provide a certificate of no assets and proof that they have not received previous housing subsidies. Palacios emphasized that each of these developments consists of comprehensive residential complexes equipped with drinking water, electricity, paved or cobblestone streets, street lighting, and community recreational spaces. (La Primerisima, 28 August 2026) Facunda González, One of the Heroic Women of Cuá, Passes Away Facunda Catalina González, one of the heroic Women of Cuá, passed away on August 29 at the age of 90 at her home in Rancho Grande, Matagalpa. González lived in the community of La Colonia Agrícola, and had various health problems. Facunda González was born on November 25, 1935, in the Yasika Sur district, in the municipality of San Ramón.  At age 25, she joined the FSLN guerrilla struggle in the areas of El Carmen, Tuma La Dalia, and Zinica, Waslala, working alongside Rigoberto Cruz (Pablo Úbeda), one of the founders of the FSLN, and Jacinto Hernández, an alternate member of the FSLN’s Historic Leadership. At age 18, Facunda married Saturnino González Hernández, a collaborator with the FSLN guerrilla movement, with whom she had nine children. Among those still alive are Andrés and Joaquina—both of whom were imprisoned as children at the Somoza National Guard barracks in El Cuá—and Olga María; all are members of the Sandinista Front. On March 10, 1970, González was among the 18 peasant women captured, severely tortured, and detained for months at the military barracks in El Cuá by the Somoza National Guard for refusing to reveal guerrilla positions.  They remained detained for several months with their young children. Facunda was later released, along with other heroic women. The funeral service was held this Sunday, August 30, at the cemetery in the El Carmen community, El Tuma-La Dalia. See photos: https://radiolaprimerisima.com/2026/08/30/fallece-facunda-gonzalez-una-de-las-heroicas-mujeres-del-cua/ (La Primerisima, 30 August 2026) Public Universities Reach Record Number of 205,000 Students Bismarck Santana, Technical Secretary for University Affairs (SETEC), announced on the program Desde el Parlamento that the country’s higher education system will offer 70,000 more spots for the 2027 academic year. Santana emphasized that this enrollment capacity is guaranteed at the 13 public universities, distributed across more than 60 campuses nationwide. He explained that, for this academic cycle, academic authorities will offer 130 university degree programs under the model of free, high-quality higher education promoted by the Nicaraguan government. Santana emphasized that the educational options are intended not only for students graduating from high school this year, but also for high school graduates from previous years who had not been able to begin their higher education. He explained that among the formats and programs available to ensure access to education throughout the country are: day, evening, Saturday and Sunday classes; open online university; university in rural areas; and special programs within the national prison system. “Higher education is a right and an opportunity to transform families, lives, communities, and the country. Young people who enter university classrooms have the opportunity to receive an education, gain skills, and become professionals completely free of charge; all that is required is determination, a calling, discipline, and commitment,” he stated. (La Primerisima, 31 August 2026) Mechnikov Institute Produced 8 Million Vaccines through 2026 Managua is home to Central America’s first and only biotechnology plant built in accordance with World Health Organization (WHO) requirements and Good Manufacturing Practice Standards. The Mechnikov Institute, the result of cooperation between Nicaragua and Russia, was established to ensure that the country would never again be at the mercy of the international market when vaccine supplies were scarce or prices rose. The idea of a plant for vaccine production arose after the 2009 influenza A (H1N1) pandemic. At that time, only Argentina, Brazil, and the United States had vaccines in the region; they allocated the doses to their domestic markets, closed their borders, and charged between $40 and $50 per dose. In 2010, at the Second Meeting of the Russia-Nicaragua Joint Commission, the possibility of building a flu vaccine production center was explored, drawing on the expertise of the St. Petersburg Institute of Vaccines and Serums. In 2014, the technology transfer agreement was signed: the Nicaraguan Social Security Institute (INSS) holds 33% of the shares and Russia holds 67%. The INSS invested about $15 million in the building, and Russia invested about $30 million in technology, explained INSS President Dr. Roberto López to Visión Sandinista magazine. Construction began in December 2015 of an 8,000-square-meter earthquake-resistant facility. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Cuban regulatory agency CECMED, and the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health were involved. The Mechnikov Institute was inaugurated in 2016, designed for export, and with a production capacity of nearly 50 million doses of influenza vaccine per year; in practice, up to 30 million per season. By 2019, it was already selling doses for $4.50 each, a price justified by Dr. Roberto López, executive president of the INSS: “The goal of this plant is to prevent people from dying. We cover the costs and keep the plant running,” he emphasized. Through 2026, the plant has produced eight million vaccines for Nicaragua; last year, 2.1 million doses. It has exported half a million doses annually to Cuba, 3.5 million doses annually to Venezuela for four years, and one shipment to Ecuador. Plant officials are exploring opportunities in Mexico. Mechnikov also manufacturs Convasell against COVID-19: 4.5 million doses this year. It serves as a platform for importing the HPV vaccine from China—administered to girls and boys aged 9 to 14—and the yellow fever vaccine from Russia: 450,000 doses in 2025 and another 450,000 this year, incorporated into the national immunization schedule. The institute employs 240 people, mostly pharmacists, engineers, and laboratory technicians trained in Nicaragua and in Russia; 16 employees are foreign nationals. (La Primerisima, 31 August 2026) Government Waives Taxes During National Holidays The Ministry of Finance and Public Credit announced the exemption of goods and services from Value-Added Tax (VAT) from September 12 to 20, 2026, as part of the National Independence holidays. The tax holiday is part on the Comprehensive Plan for the Reactivation and Recovery of the Tourism Sector. The measure aims to boost sales of food, beverage, and lodging establishments, as well as the participation of local, national, regional, and international tourism businesses. The agreement provides for a VAT (15%) exemption from September 12 to 20, 2026, on sales of food, beverages, and lodging, as well as other related activities. INTUR, together with the municipalities, promotes the sector’s participation. The General Directorate of Revenue (DGI) publishes the registration and enrollment procedures via public notice; participants must inform their customers that they are exempting taxes. (Informe Pastran, 27 August 2026)