THE HAGUE – The International Court of Justice, the principal judicial organ
of the United Nations, will hold public hearings in the case concerning Maritime Delimitation in the
Indian Ocean (Somalia v. Kenya) from Monday 15 to Wednesday 24 March 2021, at the Peace
Palace in The Hague, the seat of the Court.
In view of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the hearings will be held in hybrid format. Some
Members of the Court will attend the oral proceedings in person in the Great Hall of Justice while
others will participate remotely by video link. Representatives of the Parties to the case will
participate either in person or by video link.
Guidelines for the Parties on the organization of hearings by video link can be found on the
Court’s website.
Members of the diplomatic corps, the media and the public will be able to follow the hearings
through a live webcast on the Court’s website, as well as on UN Web TV, the United Nations online
television channel.
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Schedule for the hearings
First round of oral argument
Monday 15 March 2021 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Somalia)
Tuesday 16 March 2021 3 p.m.-4.30 p.m. (Somalia)
Thursday 18 March 2021 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Kenya)
Friday 19 March 2021 3 p.m.-4.30 p.m. (Kenya)
Second round of oral argument
Monday 22 March 2021 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Somalia)
Wednesday 24 March 2021 3 p.m.-6 p.m. (Kenya)
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History of the proceedings
The history of the proceedings can be found in press releases Nos. 2014/27, 2017/5, 2020/13
and 2021/9, available on the Court’s website.
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Multimedia
The hearings will be streamed live and on demand (VOD) in English and French on the Court’s
website, as well as on UN Web TV.
Still photographs of the hearings will be published on the Court’s website and Twitter feed
(@CIJ_ICJ) on the first two days of the hearings. Selected high-resolution video footage (b-roll) of
the hearings will be available for TV use on the Court’s website on the same days.
All photographs and videos made available to the media by the ICJ are free of charge and free
of copyright for editorial, non-commercial use.
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Note: The Court’s press releases are prepared by its Registry for information purposes only
and do not constitute official documents.
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The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.
It was established by the United Nations Charter in June 1945 and began its activities in April 1946.
The Court is composed of 15 judges elected for a nine-year term by the General Assembly and the
Security Council of the United Nations. The seat of the Court is at the Peace Palace in The Hague
(Netherlands). The Court has a twofold role: first, to settle, in accordance with international law,
through judgments which have binding force and are without appeal for the parties concerned, legal
disputes submitted to it by States; and, second, to give advisory opinions on legal questions referred
to it by duly authorized United Nations organs and agencies of the system.
