Norway expressed "regret" over Hungary's decision to exit the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Responding to a Hungary decision to quit the International Criminal Court, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry said on X: "The International Criminal Court plays a key role in ensuring accountability for international crimes, and Norway will continue to support and defend the Court."

On Thursday, Hungary announced its decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court. Gergely Gulyas, chief of staff to Prime Minister Viktor Orban, announced that the withdrawal process from the Hague-based court would begin on the same day.

Hungary announced the decision shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Budapest on a four-day visit.

At the UNSC, Palestine's envoy Riyad Mansour urges members to reflect on a Palestinian child's despair, who, after his home was bombed by Israel, cried out to a cameraman.

"Nothing justifies the killing of children," the head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees said as Israeli attacks on Gaza intensified further.

Recalling that at least 100 children are reported killed or injured every day in Gaza, since the Israeli attacks resumed on March 18, Philippe Lazzarini said on X: "The resumption of the war is again robbing them of their childhood. The war has turned Gaza into a 'no land' for children."

"This is a stain on our common humanity. Nothing justifies the killing of children wherever they are," he added.

Jordan's King Abdullah II called for an immediate cessation of Israeli air strikes on Gaza, urging for a comprehensive ceasefire and the restoration of humanitarian aid access to the region.

During a meeting with Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov in Sofia, King Abdullah emphasised the need to halt Israeli attacks, stressing that "continued attacks on civilians and humanitarian infrastructure would only exacerbate the humanitarian crisis", according to a statement by the Jordanian Royal Court.

In his discussions with Zhelyazkov, the Jordanian monarch also praised Bulgaria's efforts in hosting the Aqaba Meetings, an initiative launched by King Abdullah in 2015 aimed at fostering regional security and cooperation.

Houthis in Yemen claimed to have thwarted two planned aerial American attacks on Yemen by targeting the US warships in the Red Sea, as Washington escalated its air strikes on the poverty-stricken country.

Military spokesperson Yahya Saree said Houthi forces have "targeted the hostile US aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman and its affiliated warships in the Red Sea", using several cruise missiles and drones.

"We thwarted two aerial attacks that the enemy was preparing to launch against our country in a confrontation that was the second within the past 24 hours and lasted for several hours," Saree said.

He stressed that the group "will not abandon its moral, religious and humanitarian duties toward the oppressed Palestinian people, no matter the consequences."

There was no immediate US comment on the Houthi statement.

Humanitarian workers are among those protected under international law and Israel’s killing of 15 in the besieged enclave amounts to a war crime under the Geneva Conventions.

Jordan strongly condemned the Israeli air strikes targeting the Dar Al-Arqam school, which shelters displaced people, and a Saudi medical warehouse in Gaza.

In a statement, the Jordanian Foreign Ministry denounced the Israeli actions emphasising that they constitute a "clear breach of international law and humanitarian standards".

On Thursday evening, the Palestinian Civil Defence reported that 31 Palestinians were killed in the attack on Dar Al-Arqam School, including children and women. Six people remain missing, and dozens were injured.

Germany called for "an urgent return to a ceasefire" agreement in Gaza amid stepped-up Israeli military attacks on the enclave.

"The German government urgently calls for a return to the ceasefire... We are working very hard for a ceasefire and, of course, for an improvement in the humanitarian situation, and we are also actively calling for humanitarian supplies to Gaza to be enabled again," Foreign Ministry's interim spokesperson Amelie Titel said at a press briefing in Berlin.

The German government is committed to ensuring that "all parties find a negotiated solution instead of militarily escalating the situation, and we naturally call on all parties to lift the blockade of humanitarian aid deliveries and to protect the civilian population. We very much hope that all parties will agree to a ceasefire and that the talks will continue," she said.

An Israeli court ordered the release of two close aides to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, placing them under house arrest for two weeks in connection with the ongoing "Qatargate" investigation.

According to Israel's public broadcaster KAN, a judge at the Central District Court ruled to release Netanyahu's advisers, Jonatan Urich and Eli Feldstein, following a contentious hearing that saw harsh criticism of police conduct.

The decision came after Israeli police requested a seven-day extension of the duo's detention, citing a preliminary report that suggested their alleged actions posed a "potential threat to national security" due to suspected meetings with a Qatari lobbying group, KAN reported.

Saudi Arabia condemned an Israeli air strike on a facility linked to the kingdom in Rafah, southern Gaza, and criticised Israel's ongoing military escalation in the occupied Palestinian territories.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry said: "Israeli occupation forces targeted and destroyed a warehouse belonging to the Saudi Center for Culture and Heritage in the Morag area of Rafah, which contained medical supplies intended for the treatment of patients and the wounded in Gaza."

The ministry also denounced "Israel's broader escalation, including the continued targeting of civilians and shelters, and the killing of dozens in areas such as the Dar Al-Arqam School in northeastern Gaza, which had been sheltering displaced people".