UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

I am deeply distressed by the fast-deteriorating conditions in Gaza as Israeli forces intensify airstrikes on Jabaliya and Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza and in parts of Central Gaza. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are fleeing Rafah after the Israeli Defence Forces ordered further evacuations from the southern city, leading afresh […]

GENEVA (16 April 2024) – Retaliatory military attacks between Israel and Iran violate the right to life and must cease immediately, UN experts said today. Allegedly to counter foreign state support for “terrorism”, Israel attacked an Iranian consulate building in Syria on 1 April 2024, killing two Iranian generals, General Mohammad Reza Zahedi and General […]

GENEVA (21 March 2024) – With children in North Gaza facing imminent famine and others across the Gaza Strip in danger of catastrophic food insecurity, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child today issued the following statement, repeating its call for an immediate ceasefire. “Children in Gaza are starving to death. They are […]

GENEVA (20 March 2024) – The Russian Federation has created a stifling climate of fear in occupied areas of Ukraine, committing widespread violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in an effort to consolidate its control over the population living there, according to a UN Human Rights Office report issued today. The report, based […]

GENEVA (7 March 2024) – UN human rights experts* today urged the international community to increase pressure on the parties to the conflict to end grave crimes and fully comply with international law. Five months after the 7 October attacks on Israel by Hamas and other armed groups, and the Israeli military response which followed, […]

GENEVA (22 February 2024) – The full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation has exacted a horrific human cost, inflicting immense suffering on millions of civilians, UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk said on Thursday. “Russia’s full-scale armed attack on Ukraine, which is about to enter its third year with no end in sight, […]

December 3, 2023 – The resumption of hostilities in Gaza and its terrifying impact on civilians underscore the need for the violence to end and a long-term political solution between Palestinians and Israelis to be found, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Sunday. “Silence the guns and return to dialogue – the […]

GENEVA (November 15, 2023) – The widespread harms already caused by climate change and the accelerating existential threat it poses to the future of all human life on our planet can only be overcome if human rights guide global climate negotiations and action, said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk ahead of the […]

GENEVA (August 7, 2023) – The recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all is the foundation for freedom, justice and peace in the world.  This is the promise set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Yet at least 253 million people live in extreme situations of […]

NEW YORK (20 April 2023) – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk today launched a call for a “human rights economy”, warning that currently, economic systems are largely failing to address the basic needs of millions of people and failing to act sustainably. “Too many people around the world cannot afford basic goods. […]

GENEVA (March 30. 2023) – At a moment of increased violence in the occupied Palestinian territory, with the new Israeli government threatening even further annexation, the international community must take firm and principled action to protect the human rights and dignity of Palestinians, a UN expert said today. “The wave of deadly violence sweeping through the […]

GENEVA (January 19, 2023) – Proposed amendments to the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill should adequately ensure respect for the rights of victims, survivors and their families, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said today. “I recognise that addressing the legacy of the Troubles from the 1960s to the 1990s is a […]

GENEVA (27 December 2022) – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has called on the de facto authorities in Afghanistan to revoke immediately a raft of policies that target the rights of women and girls, noting both the “terrible, cascading effects” on their lives and the destabilizing risks such policies pose to Afghan […]

GENEVA, July 25, 2022 – The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, and the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial summary or arbitrary executions, Morris Tidball-Binz, today condemned the Myanmar junta’s execution of four individuals, as reported by the junta. “We are outraged and devastated at the news of […]

GENEVA (23 June 2022) – The dramatic real-life effects of Internet shutdowns on people’s lives and human rights have been vastly underestimated, the UN Human Rights Office warns in a new report issued today. The report urges States not to impose Internet shutdowns. “Too often, major communication channels or entire communication networks are slowed down […]

I share the profound frustration and disappointment of Afghan high school girls and women, who after six months of anticipation were prevented from returning to school today. The de facto authorities’ failure to adhere to commitments to reopen schools for girls above the sixth grade – in spite of repeated commitments towards girls’ education, including […]

Distinguished President, Excellencies, Colleagues and friends, The United Nations, and this Council, stand for the human rights of the world’s peoples: their rights to participate in decisions, to voice their views, and to live in dignity, free from fear and want. We stand for peace and for the right to development: development that is sustainable, […]

GENEVA (24 February 2022) – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Thursday said she was deeply alarmed about the Russian Federation’s military attack against Ukraine. “Civilians in various parts of Ukraine were awoken by sounds of heavy bombardment and are terrified of further escalation, with many fleeing their homes,” Bachelet said. “This […]