Geneva, March 17 (QNA) - The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Tuesday rebuffed Israeli threats to inflict devastation on Lebanon similar to that seen in Gaza, stressing that these threats are "utterly unacceptable" as long as civilians are suffering.

Speaking during a press conference in Geneva, Spokesperson for OHCHR Thameen Al Kheetan said the remarks delivered by Israeli officials, threatening to impose the same level of devastation on Lebanon as in Gaza, are absolutely unacceptable.

In many cases, the Israeli bombing raids decimated entire residential buildings in crammed urban areas, resulting mostly in the killing of numerous members of one family, including women and children, Al Kheetan added.

Al Kheetan warned that such offensives raise serious apprehensions under international humanitarian law, particularly amid the existence of 70% homeless people.

He noted that civilians are paying dearly as the mass exodus tempo dramatically accelerates, and in most cases, the displaced people have nothing except the clothes they wear, with the people who have been displaced by fighting and living in tents along Beirut’s waterfront also being affected.

UN and Lebanon's reports indicated that the war has forced over a million people to flee, accounting for over one-sixth of the country’s population. (QNA)