Saudi Arabia renews call for immediate cease-fire in Gaza

Saudi Arabia on Monday renewed its call for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip amid a deadly Israeli offensive on the Palestinian enclave since Oct. 7.

"We call on the international community to shoulder its responsibility to put an end to escalation and war, protect civilians, and pave the way for a clear and legitimate peace process that includes all parties," Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said in a speech to the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council.

The top diplomat demanded a "clear-cut, legitimate peace process" to stop Palestinians being "subjected to the worst violations of human rights."

"We should dissipate doubts about the right of Palestinians to live in security and their right to self-determination through a legitimate process that is irreversible for them to have their independent state," he said.

The Saudi minister also warned of "catastrophic consequences" from a planned Israeli ground attack on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

Tel Aviv plans a ground offensive in Rafah, where 1.4 million people have taken refuge, despite international warnings and calls to avoid any such attack.

Israel has launched a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border incursion by Hamas, killing more than 29,782 people and causing mass destruction and shortages of necessities, while nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.