Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 15 November 2012 - Stichting Al-Aqsa v Council of the European Union (C-539/10 P), Kingdom of the Netherlands v Stichting Al-Aqsa, Council of the European Union, European Commission (C-550/10 P)
(Joined Cases C-539/10 P and C-550/10 P)
(Appeals - Common foreign and security policy - Combating terrorism - Restrictive measures against certain persons and entities - Freezing of assets - Common Position 2001/931/CFSP - Article 1(4) and (6) - Regulation (EC) No 2580/2001 - Article 2(3) - Inclusion of an organisation on the list of persons, groups and entities involved in terrorist acts and maintaining it on that list - Conditions - Decision of a competent authority - Repeal of a national measure - Actions for annulment - Admissibility of the appeal - Right to respect for property - Principle of proportionality - Article 253 EC - Obligation to state the reasons on which a decision is based)
Language of the case: Dutch
Parties
(C-593/10 P)
Appellant: Stichting Al-Aqsa (represented by: M.J.G. Uiterwaal and A.M. van Eik, advocaten)
Other party to the proceedings: Council of the European Union (represented by: E. Finnegan, B. Driessen and R. Szostak, Agents)
Interveners in support of the Council of the European Union: Kingdom of the Netherlands (represented by: C.M. Wissels and M. Bulterman, Agents), European Commission (represented by: S. Boelaert and M.P. van Nuffel, Agents)
(C-550/10 P)
Appellant: Kingdom of the Netherlands (represented by: C.M. Wissels and M. Noort, Agents
Other parties to the proceedings: Stichting Al-Aqsa (represented by: A.M. van Eik, advocaat), Council of the European Union (represented by: E. Finnegan, B. Driessen and R. Szostak, Agents), European Commission (represented by: S. Boelaert and P. van Nuffel, Agents)
Re:
Appeal brought against the judgment delivered by the General Court (Seventh Chamber) on 9 September 2010 - Al-Aqsa v Council (T-348/07), by which the General Court annulled Council Decision 2007/445/EC of 28 June 2007 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation (EC) No 2580/2001 on specific restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities with a view to combating terrorism and repealing Decisions 2006/379/EC and 2006/1008/EC; Council Decision 2007/868/EC of 20 December 2007 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation No 2580/2001 and repealing Decision 2007/445; Council Decision 2008/583/EC of 15 July 2008 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation No 2580/2001 and repealing Decision 2007/868; Council Decision 2009/62/EC of 26 January 2009 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation No 2580/2001 and repealing Decision 2008/583; and Council Regulation (EC) No 501/2009 of 15 June 2009 implementing Article 2(3) of Regulation No 2580/2001 and repealing Decision 2009/62, in so far as those acts concern Stichting Al-Aqsa.
Operative part of the judgment
The Court:
Sets aside the judgment of the General Court of the European Union of 9 September 2010 in Case T-348/07 Al Aqsa v Council;
Dismisses the action and the appeal brought by Stichting Al Aqsa;
Orders Stichting Al Aqsa to bear, in addition to its own costs, those incurred by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Council of the European Union in the context of the present appeals and those incurred by the Council at first instance;
Orders the European Commission, as intervener before the General Court of the European Union and before the Court of Justice of the European Union, and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, as intervener before the General Court, to bear their own costs incurred at both instances.
____________1 - OJ C 46, 12.2.2011.