The United Nations' top court ordered Israel on Friday to immediately halt its military offensive in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, though it did not call for a cease-fire across the enclave. While Israel is unlikely to comply, resulting in increased international pressure on the already isolated nation. Israel's conduct in Gaza, especially in Rafah, has faced growing criticism. Recently, three European countries announced they would recognise a Palestinian state and another international court's chief prosecutor requested arrest warrants for Israeli and Hamas leaders.
As per news agency AP, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is also under significant domestic pressure to end the war, initiated by a Hamas-led attack that killed 1,200 people and captured around 250. Weekly demonstrations in Israel call for a resolution to bring the hostages home.
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Although the International Court of Justice's ruling affects Israel's global standing, the court lacks enforcement power. Israel indicated it would ignore the order, with government spokesperson Avi Hyman asserting that no power could stop Israel from defending itself.
Following the ruling, Netanyahu planned a special ministerial meeting to decide on a response. Opposition leader Yair Lapid criticised the decision, calling it a moral failure for not linking the military operation's end to the hostages' release and Israel's right to self-defense.
The court president, Nawaf Salam, announced the ruling amid pro-Palestinian protests. The court expressed concern over the conditions in Rafah and ordered Israel to halt its offensive. Otherwise, it might result in conditions that could cause the “physical destruction in whole or in part” of Palestinians.
Additionally, Rafah is home to a vital humanitarian crossing; however, commercial trucking has continued to enter Gaza, according to the U.N. the flow of humanitarian aid reaching Rafah has decreased since the incursion began.
The court ordering Israel to keep the Rafah crossing open, said, “The humanitarian situation is now to be characterized as disastrous.”
However, unlike what South Africa, the party that brought the case, asked for at last week's hearings, it did not demand a complete cease-fire throughout Gaza. “This order is groundbreaking as it is the first time that explicit mention is made for Israel to halt its military action in any area of Gaza, this time specifically in Rafah,” said, Zane Dangor, the director general at the South African Foreign Ministry.
He declared that his country, South Africa, would approach the United Nations Security Council to try and enforce a portion of the decision that would let outside investigators into Gaza to look into possible cases of genocide.
Balkees Jarrah, associate international justice director at Human Rights Watch, stated that the court’s order “underlines the gravity of the situation facing Palestinians in Gaza, who have for months endured the blocking of basic services and humanitarian aid amid continued fighting.”
“The ICJ’s decision opens up the possibility for relief, but only if governments use their leverage, including through arms embargoes and targeted sanctions, to press Israel to urgently enforce the court’s measures,” Jarrah said, AP news reported.
The case alleging Israel committed genocide during its Gaza campaign is related to the cease-fire request that was made late last year. Israel decisively rejects the accusations. South Africa wants interim orders to protect Palestinians while the legal wrangling goes on, even though the case will take years to resolve.
The court decided on Friday that Israel had to grant access to any fact-finding or investigative team that the UN sent to look into the claims of genocide.