Israel said Thursday that it will not comply with any orders from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the war in the Gaza Strip.
"No power on earth will stop Israel from protecting its citizens and going after Hamas in Gaza," government spokesman Avi Hyman said in statements carried by Israeli public broadcaster KAN.
The Hague-based court is expected to rule on Friday in South Africa's request to halt an Israeli ground offensive in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.
Israeli legal experts assess that there is a high probability the ICJ will issue injunctions to halt the war in Gaza, an Israeli diplomatic source told Israel Hayom newspaper.
Israel launched a ground offensive on May 6 in Rafah, where more than 1.5 million Palestinians have sheltered from Tel Aviv's war on the enclave.
The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) estimates that more than 800,000 people have fled the city since the start of the Israeli assault.
Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023 despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire in the enclave.
At least 35,800 Palestinians have been killed, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and over 80,200 others injured since last October following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.
More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel is accused of genocide at the ICJ, which has ordered it to ensure that its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
