The U.N. Security Council has called on Israel to immediately halt its military assault on the city of Rafah in Gaza, following a ruling from the World Court that condemned the actions as illegal. Senior Hamas official Basem Naim welcomed the ruling but stated that it was not enough, as the aggression by Israeli forces extended beyond Rafah. He called on the U.N. Security Council to enforce the World Court’s decision and to send investigation committees to Gaza to look into acts of genocide against Palestinians.
The Palestinian Authority also welcomed the ruling, seeing it as an international consensus to end the war on Gaza. Palestinian presidential spokesperson Nabil Abu Rudeineh expressed their approval of the decision, stating that it was a step towards peace and justice for Palestinians.
However, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded by stating that demands for Israel to stop the war were essentially calls for the country to cease to exist, something Israel would not agree to. Before the ruling, an Israeli government spokesperson had already made it clear that Israel would not be stopped from protecting its citizens and pursuing Hamas in Gaza. The ongoing conflict has caused widespread devastation and displacement for Palestinians in Gaza and continues to be a major humanitarian crisis in the region.
