Human rights under attack globally, says UN chief

GENEVA: Human rights are under attack across the world, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday, citing widespread violations of international law and civilian suffering in conflict zones including Sudan, Gaza, and Ukraine.

Speaking at the opening session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Guterres said, “The rule of law is being outmuscled by the rule of force. Around the world, human rights are being pushed back deliberately, strategically, and sometimes proudly.”

He also highlighted the impact of funding shortfalls on the UN’s work. “Humanitarian needs are exploding while funding collapses,” Guterres said, noting that the United States, the UN’s largest donor, has paid only $160 million of the more than $4 billion it owes to the global body.

UN human rights chief Volker Turk told the Council that the world is experiencing its most intense competition for power and resources since World War Two, alongside widespread human rights abuses. He called for an end to violations in Sudan, Gaza, Myanmar, and Ukraine.

Funding gaps, he said, have delayed investigations into potential war crimes in the Democratic Republic of Congo and alleged abuses in Afghanistan, both launched in 2025. A UN diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, noted that financial constraints remain a major obstacle despite member states’ pledges of support.

Guterres also addressed the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories, warning that ongoing violations of international law threaten the viability of a Palestinian state. “The two-State solution is being stripped away in broad daylight. The international community cannot allow it to happen,” he said.

Earlier this month, Israel’s cabinet approved measures to tighten control over the West Bank and facilitate settler land purchases, which Palestinians described as a “de-facto annexation.”

Most nations support a two-state solution as the only viable resolution to the decades-long conflict. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing elections later this year, has opposed any Palestinian state, citing security concerns.

Guterres’s remarks underscore growing concern at the UN over shrinking human rights protections, escalating conflicts, and declining resources to address humanitarian crises worldwide.