The U.N.'s top court is hearing arguments about whether Israel has violated international law by blocking starving Palestinians from receiving aid.

UN and Palestinian representatives at the International Court of Justice accused Israel of breaking international law by refusing to let aid into Gaza, on the first day of hearings about Israel's obligations to facilitate aid deliveries.

South Africa told the ICJ that international law 'prohibits Israel from the use of starvation as a method of warfare, including under siege.'