What is International Court of Justice and why is it weighing in on humanitarian aid in Gaza?

THE top United Nations court on Monday will begin hearing from 40 countries on what Israel must do to provide desperately needed humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

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Last year, the UN General Assembly asked the International Court of Justice to weigh in on Israel's legal obligations after the country effectively banned the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the main provider of aid to Gaza, from operating. The US, Israel's closest ally, voted against the resolution.

Israel over a month ago again cut off all aid to Gaza and its over two million people. Israel has disputed that there is a shortage of aid in Gaza, and says it is entitled to block the aid because it says Hamas seizes it for its own use.

The Hague-based court has been asked to give an advisory opinion, a non-binding but legally definitive answer, in the latest judicial proceedings involving Israel and the 18-month war in Gaza. That is expected to take several months.

What is the International Court of Justice?

Set up in the aftermath of World War II, the ICJ is an organ of the UN and adjudicates disputes between countries. Certain UN bodies, including the General Assembly, can request advisory opinions from the court's 15 judges.

All 193 UN member states are members of the ICJ, though not all of them automatically recognise its jurisdiction.