Japan urges Israel to comply with world court’s order to halt Rafah offensive

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – Japan urged Israel on Monday to obey an order by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to halt its military operations in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

The provisional measures “are legally binding on the parties to disputes and to be observed in good faith,” Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko told her Israeli counterpart Israel Katz in a phone call.

Kamikawa also linked the release of Israeli hostages being held in Gaza to a cease-fire in the besieged Palestinian enclave, according to a statement by Japan’s Foreign Ministry.

She also said that Tokyo was opposed to a full-scale military operation by Israel in Rafah.

On the situation in Gaza, Kamikawa “called for an immediate cease-fire so that the release of the hostages is realized and a conducive environment so that humanitarian assistance activities are ensured in a sustainable manner,” the statement said.

Japan hopes this “would lead to the realization of a sustainable cease-fire,” she told Katz.

Kamikawa also expressed Japan’s deep concern for the critical humanitarian situation in Gaza.

She told Katz that humanitarian assistance activities, including making use of the Rafah crossing, “should not be impeded.”

Katz explained Israel’s position on the ICJ’s order and on the application for arrest warrants by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, the ministry said.

Israel has killed nearly 36,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.

The military campaign has turned much of the enclave of 2.3 million people into ruins, leaving most civilians homeless and at risk of famine.

The attack comes despite a ruling by the ICJ that ordered Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.