The International Court of Justice said Wednesday (October 22, 2025) that Israel was obliged to ease the passage of aid into Gaza, stressing it had to provide Palestinians with the “basic needs” to survive.

The wide-ranging ICJ ruling, quickly rejected by Israel, came as aid groups scrambled to scale up much-needed humanitarian assistance into Gaza, seizing upon a fragile ceasefire agreed earlier this month.

The ICJ’s “Advisory Opinion” is not legally binding but the court believes it carries “great legal weight and moral authority”.

ICJ President Yuji Iwasawa said Israel was “under an obligation to agree to and facilitate relief schemes provided by the United Nations and its entities”.

That included UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, which Israel has banned after accusing some of its staff of taking part in the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack that sparked the war.

The ICJ ruled that Israel had not substantiated the allegations. Israel did not take part in the proceedings and hit back at the findings.

“Israel categorically rejects the ICJ’s ‘advisory opinion,’ which was entirely predictable from the outset regarding UNRWA,” foreign ministry spokesman, Oren Marmorstein, posted on X. “This is yet another political attempt to impose political measures against Israel under the guise of ‘International Law.’”

Mr. Iwasawa said the ICJ “rejects the argument that the request abuses and weaponises the international judicial process”.

Another Israeli official added that Israel “cooperates with international organisations, with other U.N. agencies regarding Gaza. But Israel will not cooperate with UNRWA”.

Within hours of the ruling, Norway said it would propose a U.N. General Assembly resolution demanding that Israel lift restrictions on Gaza aid.

And the Palestinian delegate to the ICJ, Ammar Hijazi, urged nations to ensure Israel complies with the court to let aid into Gaza. “The responsibility is on the international community to uphold these values and oblige Israel, bring Israel into compliance,” he told reporters.

Before the ruling, Abeer Etefa, Middle East spokeswoman for the U.N.’s World Food Programme (WFP), said 530 WFP trucks had crossed into Gaza since the ceasefire started on October 10.

The trucks had delivered more than 6,700 tonnes of food, which she said was “enough for close to half a million people for two weeks”.

Ms. Etefa said around 750 tonnes a day were now coming through, well below WFP’s target of around 2,000 tonnes daily.

The ICJ said that Israel, as an occupying power, was under an obligation “to ensure the basic needs of the local population, including the supplies essential for their survival”.

At the same time, Israel was “also under a negative obligation not to impede the provision of these supplies”, the court said.

The court also recalled the obligation under international law not to use starvation as a method of warfare.

‘Serious concerns’

The U.N. had asked the ICJ to clarify Israel’s obligations, as an occupying power, towards U.N. and other bodies “including to ensure and facilitate the unhindered provision of urgently needed supplies essential to the survival” of Palestinians.

ICJ judges heard a week of evidence in April from dozens of nations and organisations, much of which revolved around the status of UNRWA.

At the hearings, a U.S. official raised “serious concerns” about UNRWA’s impartiality and alleged that Hamas used the agency’s facilities.

The U.S. official, Josh Simmons, said Israel had “no obligation to permit UNRWA specifically to provide humanitarian assistance”.

Simmons added that UNRWA was not the only option for delivering aid into Gaza.

However, the ICJ noted that UNRWA “cannot be replaced on short notice without a proper transition plan”.

Mr. Hijazi told the April hearings that Israel was blocking aid as a “weapon of war”, sparking starvation in Gaza.

The case was separate from the others Israel faces under international law over its Gaza campaign.

In July 2024, the ICJ issued another advisory opinion stating that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories was “unlawful” and must end as soon as possible.

ICJ judges are also weighing accusations, brought by South Africa, that Israel has broken the 1948 U.N. Genocide Convention with its actions in Gaza.

Another court in The Hague, the International Criminal Court, has issued arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.

It also issued a warrant for Hamas commander Mohammed Deif, who Israel says was killed in an airstrike.

Published – October 22, 2025 10:51 pm IST

Displaced Palestinians ride on a vehicle loaded with belongings as they flee from one area to another within Gaza City, amid an Israeli military operation, in Gaza City, on August 29, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

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Cairo, Egypt:

Two Hamas officials on Wednesday accused Israel of delaying the delivery of vital humanitarian aid to Gaza, as agreed in the ceasefire deal, and warned that it could impact the release of hostages.

“We warn that continued delays and failure to address these points (delivery of key aid) will affect the natural progression of the agreement, including the prisoner exchange,” a senior Hamas official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Another official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said the group had asked mediators to intervene in the issue. 

Hamas officials said Israel was failing to send key aid items – such as fuel, tents, heavy machinery and other equipment – into the Gaza Strip, as agreed for the first stage of the ceasefire that took effect on January 19.

“According to the agreement, these materials were supposed to enter during the first week of the ceasefire,” the senior Hamas official said.

“There is dissatisfaction among the resistance factions due to the occupation’s procrastination and failure to implement the terms of the ceasefire, particularly regarding the humanitarian aspects.”

The two officials said the group raised the issue during an ongoing meeting with Egyptian mediators in Cairo on Wednesday.

“We hope and call on the mediators and guarantors to do everything possible to ensure that the occupation implements the terms of the agreement and allows the entry of these materials,” the senior official said.

The latest warning by Hamas comes as the group is expected to release three hostages on Thursday, including two women.

A further three hostages are set to be released on Saturday.

Israel and Hamas are currently implementing the first 42-day phase of a ceasefire that aims to end the war in Gaza.

Under the deal, seven Israeli hostages have already been released in exchange for 290 prisoners — almost all of them Palestinian, except for one Jordanian.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)