UN court order to halt Israel's Rafah offensive further isolates US position

WASHINGTON, May 25 (AP/Reuters/AFP): A ruling by the top United Nations court ordering Israel to halt its military offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah has deepened its disconnect with the United States over an operation that faces mounting international condemnation but that American officials describe, at least for now, as limited and targeted.
The decision Friday by the International Court of Justice in The Hague adds to the pressure facing an increasingly isolated Israel, coming just days after Norway, Ireland and Spain said they would recognize a Palestinian state, and the chief prosecutor of a separate international court sought arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as leaders of Hamas.
The Biden administration stands apart from the global community - though it is opposed to a major offensive in Rafah, the administration also insists that the steps its close ally Israel has taken so far have not crossed red lines.
Administration officials so far have appeared determined to press on with military and political support for Israel following the deadly Hamas attack it endured last October, while also pressuring its ally to avoid a full-scale military operation in densely populated Rafah.
Israeli activists battle
over Gaza-bound aid
Months after some Israelis started to protest against aid lorries entering Gaza at the main Kerem Shalom crossing, the battle has moved to other key junctions, where rival groups of activists do their best to block or protect aid convoys.
In recent weeks, social media has been flooded with images of aid lorries being blocked and ransacked.
Right-wing activists, including Jewish settlers living in the occupied West Bank, have uploaded dozens of videos of crowds, including some very young children, hurling food onto the ground and stamping on boxes of aid.
Macron discusses Gaza
war with Arab ministers
France's president, Qatar's prime minister and the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan held talks Friday on the Gaza war and ways to set up a Palestinian state alongside Israel, the French presidency said.
French President Emmanuel Macron organised the meeting amid growing international concerns over the Israel-Hamas war. It came a few hours after the UN's top court ordered Israel to halt its offensive in the Gaza city of Rafah.
Italy to resume funding for UN
agency for Palestinian refugees
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Saturday announced Rome would restore funding for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees as he met with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa.
"I informed Mustafa that the government has arranged new funding for the Palestinian population, for a total of 35 million euros... Of this, five million will be allocated to UNRWA," Tajani said, according to a statement from his office.