The UN’s human rights chief told AFP that Israel’s plan for an expanded offensive in the Gaza Strip represented “a very dangerous moment” for civilians there.

“What we see is only more destruction, more hatred, more dehumanisation,” said Volker Turk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, during a visit to Copenhagen for a UN meeting.

“It’s a very dangerous moment for civilians,” he added, criticising the Israeli plan for an expanded offensive in the Gaza Strip.