Top UN court orders Israel to stop Gaza offensive

Judges at the International Court of Justice in The Hague said on Friday that the situation in Gaza had deteriorated since they last ordered Israel to take urgent steps to alleviate the humanitarian crisis there.

Reading out a ruling ordering Israel to halt its military offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Nawaf Salam, president of the top United Nations court, said provisional measures ordered by the body in March did not fully address the current situation in the enclave.

The ruling was made after an urgent plea by South Africa to order Israel to halt its offensive in Gaza over accusations of genocide, a claim dismissed by Israel.