A Palestinian diplomat has told the United Nations’ top court that Israel is killing and displacing civilians and targeting aid workers in Gaza in a case that Israel criticized as part of its “systematic persecution and delegitimization.

The UN's top court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), has begun hearings for an opinion on whether Israel must co-operate with the UN's Palestinian refugee agency - Unrwa - after it severed ties with it last year after accusing it of colluding with Hamas.

A top Palestinian official told the International Court of Justice on Monday that Israel was blocking humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza as a "weapon of war", starting off a week of hearings at the UN's top court.