The International Court of Justice has ordered Israel to ensure “unhindered” aid can get into Gaza. The legally binding order was issued after a request by South Africa, which brought the genocide case against Israel to the ICJ in January. The court noted in its latest order, “Palestinians in Gaza are no longer facing only a risk of famine … but that famine is setting in.” The judges also cite U.N. data which finds “at least 31 people, including 27 children, having already died of malnutrition and dehydration.” Israel is required to submit a report to the ICJ in a month showing how it has implemented the order.

In northern Gaza, where the U.N. warns famine is “imminent,” the Kamal Adwan Hospital is seeing an increasing number of extremely underweight babies and children. This is nurse Ahmed Al-Ali.

Ahmed Al-Ali: “We received this case about an hour ago, a malnutrition case. We got used to receiving such cases daily. She is suffering as a result of a lack of nutrients she’s receiving. You can tell that her age doesn’t match her weight. She’s 2 months old, and yet she’s only two kilos and some fractions. … My shift in the intensive care does not go without three or four cases of this kind, from bad to worse, and the result is death.”

The official death toll in Gaza has now topped 32,600.

In Syria, Israeli airstrikes near Aleppo killed some 40 people, according to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. State media reports civilians are among the dead and injured. The attacks struck missile depots used by Hezbollah, and reportedly killed at least five Hezbollah fighters. Israel and Hezbollah have engaged in near-daily skirmishes across the Israel-Lebanon border since October 7.

Hebrew University in Jerusalem has reinstated Professor Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, the internationally renowned feminist Palestinian professor, who was suspended earlier this month after saying in an interview Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. Hebrew University reportedly did not demand she recant those remarks, but did reinstate her after she clarified her remarks on reports of sexual assaults during the October 7 attacks. Her suspension had been met with protests from students and faculty of the school. Click here to see our interview with Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian.

Here in New York, President Biden appeared with former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton at a massive campaign fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall Thursday. The star-studded event featured musical performances, and the conversation with the three presidents was moderated by “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert. Outside the venue, thousands of activists gathered to protest U.S. support for Israel’s war on Gaza.

Lamees Mohamed: “It’s an issue of them funding and facilitating this genocide that’s carried out by Israel. They are supporting the death of over 40,000 people. And this is not the first time they’ve supported death and war. And people are sick of that. People are going hungry in this city. People don’t have a place to sleep. And all the while, we’re sending billions of dollars to Israel to kill Palestinians and to steal their land.”

Inside the event, activists repeatedly disrupted Biden’s conversation, shouting “Stop Arming Israel!”, “Let Gaza Live!” and “Shame on you!” The event disruption was organized by a coalition including Adalah Justice Project, Palestinian Youth Movement, Jewish Voice for Peace and Sunrise Movement. We’ll hear more voices from the protest later in the broadcast.

A new Gallup poll found that 55% of Americans disapprove of Israel’s military actions in Gaza, up 10 percentage points from November.

Earlier in the day, activists held a vigil on the steps of Manhattan’s City Hall. Organized by The Slow Factory, activists read out names of Palestinians killed since October 7. This is Vivien Sansour from the Palestine Heirloom Seed Library.

Vivien Sansour: “The soil has become so toxic because of the amount of bombs, from white phosphorus to all kinds of other ammunition. And, you know, the infrastructure was destroyed, so there’s also sewage. There’s so many diseases. So, a lot of our trees, which, for us, our trees are part of our family, they are part of our kin, and they are being destroyed, too.”

In voting news, a federal court ruled South Carolina can use a Republican gerrymandered congressional map for the upcoming U.S. House election. This, despite the same court ruling last year it was unconstitutional and that it “exiled” more than 30,000 Black residents from the Charleston-area district. But the U.S. Supreme Court has yet to issue a decision on the ruling’s challenge, allowing it to stay in place at least through the 2024 elections. The seat is currently held by the Trump-endorsed Congressmember Nancy Mace, who is running for reelection.

Meanwhile, in Florida, a federal court allowed a gerrymandered map that sidelines Black voters to remain in place. The map was created in 2022 after Governor Ron DeSantis set out to dismantle the Northern District of former Congressmember Al Lawson, a Black Democrat.

In other voting news, the Texas Court of Appeals has reversed the conviction of Crystal Mason, a Black woman who faced five years in prison for submitting a provisional ballot in 2016 even though she was barred from voting due to a past felony conviction. Mason was unaware she was not eligible to vote, and the provisional ballot was never counted as a vote. Crystal Mason celebrated the win Thursday, saying, “I was thrown into this fight for voting rights and will keep swinging to ensure no one else has to face what I’ve endured for over six years, a political ploy where minority voting rights are under attack.” Click here to see our interview with Crystal Mason.

The Biden administration has restored a series of wildlife protections under the Endangered Species Act that were rolled back under Trump. This includes reinstating certain protections for species classified as “threatened” with extinction, and taking into greater consideration the threat of climate change when issuing protections.

Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for fraud and conspiracy. District Judge Lewis Kaplan noted Bankman-Fried’s “apparent lack of any remorse” for defrauding FTX customers out of at least $8 billion. Bankman-Fried’s lawyer said they plan to appeal.

A federal judge has tossed Elon Musk’s lawsuit against the watchdog Center for Countering Digital Hate, writing in his ruling, “This case is about punishing the Defendants for their speech.” Elon Musk sued the nonprofit after they reported that hate speech, racism and misinformation soared on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, after the billionaire took ownership of the site in 2022. The Center for Countering Digital Hate welcomed the lawsuit’s dismissal, writing on X, “We’ll continue exposing hate & lies on X, and campaigning for social media bosses like Musk to be held accountable.” Click here to see our interview about this case with the head of the Center for Countering Digital Hate.

Colombia has expelled its Argentine diplomats as tensions between Argentine President Javier Milei and his leftist Latin American counterparts reached new heights this week. Excerpts from a new CNN interview with Milei show the right-wing leader lashing out at Colombian President Gustavo Petro and Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and attacking Venezuela and Cuba.

President Javier Milei: “The butchery in Venezuela is unheard of, same with the jail that is Cuba. There are other cases that are on their way to becoming like Venezuela, such as Colombia with Mr. Petro. We cannot expect much from someone who was a murderer, terrorist and communist.”

Milei was referencing Petro’s history as a former member of the M19 rebel movement. Milei also called López Obrador “ignorant.” Among other things, the leaders are at odds over their support for Israel. Milei is a staunch supporter of Israel, while Petro earlier this week threatened to sever diplomatic ties with Israel if it ignores the U.N. Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Saudi Arabia was chosen to chair the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women. Rights groups expressed outrage at the news. Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for Advocacy Sherine Tadros said, “Saudi Arabia’s abysmal record when it comes to protecting and promoting the rights of women puts a spotlight on the vast gulf between the lived reality for women and girls in Saudi Arabia, and the aspirations of the Commission.” Earlier this week, Amnesty International released a report condemning a leaked draft of Saudi Arabia’s first written penal code, which, Amnesty says, criminalizes free speech, homosexuality and abortion and fails to protect women and girls from all forms of gender-based violence.