The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Friday ordered Israel to "immediately" halt its military offensive in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip. Panel judges voted 13 to 2 in favor of the order, which characterized the humanitarian situation in Gaza as "disastrous" and "catastrophic." The ICJ said Israel must "immediately halt its military offensive and any other action in the Rafah Governorate which may inflict on Palestinian groups in Gaza conditions of life that would bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part." It added that Israel must keep the Rafah crossing open for "unhindered provision" of aid at the scale necessary to provide "urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance." The court said that 800,000 people would be displaced by May 28 and found that Israeli efforts to alleviate risk to civilians or provide necessary food, water or shelter were "not sufficient."
The Israeli military released images allegedly showing an assault in the north, where it claims to have destroyed rocket-launching sites. The fighting has forced Palestinians to abandon the Jabaliya refugee camp. The UN says more than 100,000 people have fled northern Gaza in recent weeks. The situation in Rafah, the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip, is equally as dire, with the Israeli military reporting that 900,000 Palestinians have fled the area. As a result of ongoing fighting in Gaza, UN aid agencies have said that they are unable to access their warehouses in Rafah and are suspending aid operations.

#gaza #rafah #israelgazaplan
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