Live updates | Gaza death toll surpasses 26,000 as Israel awaits a UN court ruling on its offensive

The International Court of Justice was set to read out its decision Friday on whether to order Israel to halt its offensive in Gaza as the Health Ministry announced that deaths there had surpassed 26,000 since the Israel-Hamas war began.

South Africa accused Israel of genocide and asked the court in The Hague, Netherlands, for interim orders, including that Israel halt its offensive in Gaza. Israel swiftly rejected the filing and asked the court to throw out the case.

The Health Ministry in Gaza said Friday that 26,083 people have been killed and more than 64,400 wounded in the enclave since the Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, when militants from Gaza killed around 1,200 people and took about 250 hostages.

Gaza’s Health Ministry said Thursday that Israeli fire struck a crowd of people waiting for humanitarian aid at a roundabout in Gaza City on Thursday, killing at least 20 and wounding 150. The Israeli military says it was looking into the reports.