The UN's top court on Friday ordered Israel to "immediately" halt its military assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafa, saying the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory was "disastrous."
The ruling read aloud by judge Nawaf Salam at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague was in response to an urgent application submitted by South Africa.
South Africa justified its application to the ICJ by arguing that the court's previous measures in connection with the Gaza war were inadequate.
While the court's rulings are binding, it has no means of forcing compliance. It can, however, call on the UN Security Council to act.