The leaders of the world’s seven leading industrialized democracies called on Israel to respect human rights in the war on Gaza and to refrain from a major offensive in Rafah in their final declaration on Friday, amid concerns about the civilian population. They condemned the October 7 attack by the Palestinian Islamist Hamas in the strongest terms, alongside the group’s strategy of using civilians as shields. They also warned the Israeli leadership, after criticism worldwide of the high number of civilian casualties and catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza due to the Israeli military o…