Also Friday, the United Nations Security Council approved a resolution condemning attacks against aid workers and United Nations personnel. The resolution was adopted by 14 votes to 0, with Russia abstaining.
Smoke was seen in the Gaza Strip asIsrael continues its offensive against Hamas despite a decision by the International Court of JusticeFriday, according to which the military offensive in Rafah must stop immediately.
The highest court of the United Nations also decided that the Rafah border post was to be reopened to enable the delivery of aid, but the judges did not order a total ceasefire throughout the Gaza Strip.
Israel seized this key crossing point with Egypt in early May when it launched what U.S. officials called a “limited” operation aimed at blocking Hamas’s supply lines.
The new interim measures are part of proceedings initiated last year by South Africa, which accuses Israel of having committed genocide during its campaign in Gaza.
The ICJ’s decision was welcomed by the Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations.
“We believe that the ICJ’s provisional measures requiredMoreoverstopping all military operations in the Gaza Strip and stopping these crimes and potential crimes of genocide against our people in the Gaza Strip“, said Riyad Mansour.
But displaced Palestinians in Gaza expressed frustration with the ICJ ruling, which only ordered an end to Israeli military operations in Rafah.
“The residents of Rafah are not the only ones suffering. We, the people of the north, have been disgraced and humiliated. We demand that this decision be reviewed and that the request for a ceasefire be taken into account in all areas of the Gaza Strip. Rafah is not the only affected area“, said Nadia Al Debis.
The Court has no enforcement power
More than 900,000 Palestinians have been displaced from Rafah in the past two weeksmany with little or no access to food, water or shelter.
But it is unlikely that Israel, which denounced the ruling, will comply with the Court’s decision.
ICJ decisions are officially bindingbut they have already been ignored, because the Court has no enforcement power. Russia, which was ordered in 2022 to end its massive invasion of Ukraine, has yet to respond to the ICJ ruling.
Meanwhile, at the United Nations, the Security Council approved a resolution that condemns attacks on aid workers and UN personnel.
The vote was 14 to 0, with Russia abstaining.
The resolution, sponsored by Switzerland, expresses deep concern over the increasing number of attacks and threats against United Nations and humanitarian personnel, as well as the disregard and violations of international humanitarian law by fighters.
The Hamas-run Health Ministry says the death toll in Gaza now stands at at least 35,000, but it does not distinguish between fighters and civilians.