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Live blog update| Israel's war on Gaza

UN: Israeli offensive in Gaza's Rafah 'cannot be allowed to happen'

The United Nations human rights office said on Friday that an Israeli offensive in Gaza's border town of Rafah could not be allowed to happen because it would cause massive loss of life.

"Should Israel launch its threatened military offensive into Rafah, where 1.5 million people have been displaced in deplorable, subhuman conditions, any ground assault on Rafah would incur massive loss of life and would heighten the risk of further atrocity crimes," said Jeremy Laurence, spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office spokesperson.

"This must not be allowed to happen."

Reporting by Reuters