Saudi praises ICJ order for Israel to halt Rafah assault

Saudi Arabia on Friday hailed the top United Nations court's ruling ordering Israel to halt its military offensive in southern Gaza's Rafah, but called for it to be extended to the rest of the Palestinian territory.

The Gulf kingdom welcomed the International Court of Justice's decision as "a positive step towards the moral and legal right of the Palestinian people", the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement.

"However, the Kingdom stresses the importance of such international resolutions to include all Palestinian areas," it added.

Riyadh also reiterated "its call to the international community to assume its responsibilities to stop all forms of aggression against the Palestinian people".

The conservative kingdom, home to Islam's holiest sites, has long positioned itself as a champion of the Palestinian cause and has never recognised Israel.

However, its de facto ruler Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said in September that progress was being made on a possible normalisation deal that would also involve beefed up security and other agreements with the United States.

Since war broke out in Gaza on October 7, triggered by Hamas's unprecedented attack on southern Israel, Saudi officials have said ties with Israel are impossible without "irrevocable" steps towards recognition of a Palestinian state, which Israel has long opposed.

The top UN court on Friday ordered Israel to halt military operations in Rafah "immediately", in a landmark ruling likely to increase mounting international pressure on Israel more than seven months into the Gaza war.

The Hague-based court, whose orders are legally binding but lack direct enforcement mechanisms, also ordered Israel to keep open the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza, which it closed earlier this month at the start of its assault on the city.

Mediators Egypt and Qatar also welcomed the ICJ ruling on Friday, with Cairo calling on Israel to "comply with its legal commitments" and "implement all the temporary measures issued" by the court.

Doha, which hosts Hamas's political bureau, meanwhile "expressed hope that the decision would pave the way for an immediate, comprehensive, and permanent ceasefire".

In response to the court ruling, Israel gave no indication it was preparing to change course in Rafah, insisting that the court had got it wrong.

"Israel has not and will not carry out military operations in the Rafah area that create living conditions that could cause the destruction of the Palestinian civilian population, in whole or in part," National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said in a joint statement with the foreign ministry spokesman.