New York, SANA –Israel must not pursue a complete takeover of the Gaza Strip because this development runs contrary to international law, Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights affirmed Friday.

“A complete military takeover of the occupied Gaza Strip must be immediately halted,” UN News Centre quoted Türk as saying.

The development runs contrary to international law, Mr. Türk continued, referring to a ruling of the International Court of Justice that Israel must end its occupation and achieve a two-State solution giving Palestinians the right to self-determination.

Any further escalation “will result in more massive forced displacement, more killing, more unbearable suffering, senseless destruction and atrocity crimes”, the UN rights chief said.

Mr. Türk insisted that rather than intensifying the conflict, “Israeli should put all its efforts into saving the lives of Gaza’s civilians by allowing the full, unfettered flow of humanitarian aid”.

Echoing widespread concerns for the people of Gaza, the head of the UN World Health Organization (WHO), warned that other Gazans have only limited access to basic services and food, while malnutrition is widespread and hunger-related deaths are rising.