Israel news: Ceasefire calls from Canada, N.Z., Australia [Video]

The prime ministers of Canada, New Zealand and Australia released a letter renewing calls for an “urgent ceasefire” in Gaza on Friday morning. Israel’s ambassador to Canada responded, calling on Ottawa to step up against “those who try to disrupt global order.”

The letter presses Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept the latest ceasefire proposal backed by U.S. President Joe Biden and endorsed by the UN Security Council.

“The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue,” reads the letter.

The health ministry in Gaza says more than 39,000 Palestinians have now been killed in the nine-month war. Netanyahu, recently having arrived in Washington, D.C. for talks with U.S. leaders, has signalled a deal to return Israeli hostages is “ripening.”

The letter also calls on Israel to “respond substantively” to the UN’s advisory opinion on the occupied Palestinian territories, calling Israeli settlements there “unlawful.”

Last week, the top UN court said Israel had …