Achi news desk-
Judges at the International Court of Justice have unanimously ordered Israel to take all necessary and effective steps to ensure that basic food supplies reach the Palestinian population in Gaza without delay.
The ICJ said that the population in Gaza faces worsening living conditions, and widespread hunger and starvation.
“The court observes that Palestinians in Gaza are no longer only at risk of starvation (…) but that starvation is beginning,” said the judges in their order.
South Africa requested the new measures as part of its ongoing case accusing Israel of state-led genocide in Gaza.
In January the ICJ, also known as the World Court, ordered Israel to refrain from any acts that might fall under the Genocide Convention and to ensure that its troops do not carry out any genocidal acts against Palestinians in Gaza .
In Thursday’s order the court reaffirmed the January measures but added that Israel must act to ensure the unimpeded provision of basic services and humanitarian aid including food, water and electricity as well as medical supplies and medical care to Palestinians throughout Gaza.
The judges added that this could be done “by increasing the capacity and number of land crossings and keeping them open for as long as necessary”.
The court ordered Israel to submit a report within a month of the order detailing how it had given effect to the ruling.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa formed a new cabinet on Thursday in which he will also serve as foreign minister, making an immediate ceasefire and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza a priority, according to Palestinian news agency WAFA.
Mustafa, an ally of President Mahmoud Abbas and a leading business figure, was appointed prime minister this month with a mandate to help reform the Palestinian Authority (PA), which exercises limited self-rule in the Israeli-occupied West Bank .
He was also assigned to lead the relief and reconstruction of Gaza, which has been torn apart by more than five months of war, while doing double duty as foreign minister in place of Riyad al-Maliki who had served in the job since 2009.
Abbas, who as president is by far the most powerful figure in the PA, appointed the new government in a show of willingness to meet international demands for a change in administration.
He approved Mustafa’s cabinet with financial expert Omar al-Bitar as finance minister, and Muhamad al Amour – who served as president of the Palestinian Businessmen’s Association – as economy minister.
He retained Ziad Hab al-Reeh, the former head of the PA’s internal intelligence agency, as interior minister, WAFA said.
The new cabinet, which includes eight ministers from Gaza, will also include a minister of state for “relief affairs”.
Mustafa said in a statement addressed to Abbas that the first priority was an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and the complete withdrawal of Israel from the enclave, as well as allowing humanitarian aid to enter in large amounts and reach all areas, WAFA reported.
“To enable the launch of the recovery process and prepare for reconstruction, stop the aggressive and settlement activities, and curb settler terrorism in the West Bank,” added Mustafa.
Hamas, the Islamist movement that ruled Gaza until Israel’s invasion following the October 7 attack on southern Israel, has criticized Mustafa’s appointment but had no immediate response to naming his new cabinet.
The PA, which is controlled by the Abbas Fatah political faction, has long had a strained relationship with Hamas and the two factions fought a brief war before Fatah was expelled from the territory in 2007.
However, he has repeatedly condemned Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip and has insisted that he must play a role in running Gaza after the war, a position supported by the United States.
