The top UN court is set to rule on a request for it to order Israel to halt its offensive in Gaza

The top United Nations court is set to rule on an urgent plea by South Africa for judges to order Israel to halt its military operations in Gaza and withdraw from the enclave. Israel is unlikely to comply with any such order. Even so, a cease-fire order Friday by the International Court of Justice would heap more pressure on an increasingly isolated Israel as it continues its military assault on Gaza following the deadly Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas-led militants. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is already under heavy pressure at home and abroad to end the war.