The top United Nations court ordered Israel to halt military operations in Rafah on Friday, a landmark decision that is likely to increase international pressure on Israel after more than seven months of the Gaza war.
Israel has to “immediately halt its military offensive, and any other action in the Rafah Governorate, which may inflict on the Palestinian group in Gaza conditions of life that could bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part,” according to the International Court of Justice.
The court also directed Israel to keep the Rafah crossing into Egypt open “for unhindered provision at scale of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance.”
The ICJ, in a much-anticipated decision, stated that Israel must “maintain open the Rafah crossing for unhindered provision at scale of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance.”
While the decision by the International Court of Justice is a blow to Israel’s international standing, the court lacks a police force to enforce its orders. In another case on its docket, Russia has so far ignored the court’s 2022 order to stop its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
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