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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk Remarks to HRC 60 Urgent debate
Speaking at a Human Rights Council urgent debate in Geneva on the Israeli strike on negotiators in Qatar, Türk urged the Council and all governments to condemn the strike, which was a flagrant violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Qatar.
“The attack violated the right to life under international human rights law, and the principles of international humanitarian law,” Türk said.
“Targeting parties engaged in internationally supported mediation on its territory undermines Qatar’s key role as a facilitator and peace broker. It is an attack on global efforts to resolve conflicts peacefully,” he added, urging the Council to reaffirm the central importance of mediation processes, and to call for accountability for unlawful killings
The rules of war, which govern every party to armed conflict, were agreed over decades for the common good, Türk said. Under those rules, the distinction between civilian and military targets is fundamental, and an attack may never be targeted at civilians who are not taking a direct part in hostilities.
“In the case of the Israeli attack in Doha, the Hamas delegation was in Qatar to negotiate for a ceasefire – a vital step towards peace. And peace that is so desperately needed in Gaza, in the occupied West Bank, in Lebanon, in Syria, in Yemen and across the entire region,” Türk stressed.
The Israeli attack was concurrent with other actions which are destroying any prospect of the two-state solution – the only route to sustainable peace, the High Commissioner noted.
On the same day as the attack, Israel signalled a new phase of its assault on Gaza, with a displacement order for some one million people to leave Gaza City, without necessary provision for their safety and security. This is another blatant contravention of international humanitarian law.
Meanwhile, as funerals were held for those killed in Doha, the Israeli Government formally signed off on the so-called E1 project near East Jerusalem. The Israeli Prime Minister described this project as fulfilling the Government’s promise to stop the creation of a Palestinian State.
“This is the latest in a long list of illegal facts on the ground that are bringing the two-state solution closer and closer to a point of no return,” said Türk.
“Our hearts break for the civilians of Gaza; for the Israeli hostages and their loved ones; for those arbitrarily held in Israeli prisons and their families. War without laws means a future of endless cruelty and suffering for civilians, both Palestinian and Israeli,” the UN Human Rights Chief warned.
He underscored that the United Nations has been on the ground throughout, delivering aid and documenting violations, at huge cost. Hundreds of UN colleagues have been killed.
Nearly two years after the appalling terror attacks of 7 October 2023 and the ensuing escalation in violence, this carnage has to stop, Türk said.
“Member States cannot wait any longer. They have an obligation to take concrete action to stop egregious violations of international law, including those spelt out by the International Court of Justice,” Türk said.
“We must stop the flow to Israel of arms that risk violating the laws of war. They must apply maximum pressure for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages and those arbitrarily detained, as well as the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid into Gaza,” the High Commissioner stressed.
Türk called on Member States to do everything possible to support the right to self-determination for the Palestinian people.
ENDS
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STORY: United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk
Remarks to Human Rights Council meeting on the Israeli strike on negotiators in Qatar
TRT: 03:18
SOURCE: OHCHR / UNOG
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: English/NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 16 September 2025 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
SHOTLIST
- Exterior shot : Palais des Nations
- Wide shot : Assembly Hall
- Wide shot : Podium
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “Israel’s strike on negotiators in Doha on 9 September was a shocking breach of international law, an assault on regional peace and stability, and a blow against the integrity of mediation and negotiating processes around the world.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “The attack violated the right to life under international human rights law, and the principles of international humanitarian law.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “Targeting parties engaged in internationally supported mediation on its territory undermines Qatar’s key role as a facilitator and peace broker. It is an attack on global efforts to resolve conflicts peacefully.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “In the case of the Israeli attack in Doha, the Hamas delegation was in Qatar to negotiate for a ceasefire – a vital step towards peace. And peace that is so desperately needed in Gaza, in the occupied West Bank, in Lebanon, in Syria, in Yemen and across the entire region.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “This is the latest in a long list of illegal facts on the ground that are bringing the two-state solution closer and closer to a point of no return.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “Our hearts break for the civilians of Gaza; for the Israeli hostages and their loved ones; for those arbitrarily held in Israeli prisons and their families. War without laws means a future of endless cruelty and suffering for civilians, both Palestinian and Israeli.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “Member States cannot wait any longer. They have an obligation to take concrete action to stop egregious violations of international law, including those spelt out by the International Court of Justice.”
- Cut away: Assembly Hall
- SOUNDBITE (English)— Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights: “We must stop the flow to Israel of arms that risk violating the laws of war. They must apply maximum pressure for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages and those arbitrarily detained, as well as the entry of sufficient humanitarian aid into Gaza.”
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As world’s water reserves change, countries must prepare for a new reality: WMO
New data showing that rivers were at their lowest level for decades last year provides further evidence that the climate crisis is real and countries must act immediately to protect themselves from the increasing threat to communities and livelihoods, the UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) said on Thursday.
The key findings from WMO’s State of Global Water Resources 2025 report covering the hydrological cycle and extreme events in the five-year period to last year:
- 2025 was one of driest years for river discharge in 35 years
- Past seven years have seen abnorfmal river flows
- Water storage on Earth’s land surface has decreased in past decade
- Widespread glacier loss across all regions for fourth consecutive year
- Asia and Africa are regions most affected by water-related disasters
- Water data availability has improved, but gaps remain in hard-hit areas
Highlighting the long-term decline in the Earth’s freshwater storage and glacier melt, WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo explained that the planet’s water reserves used to act as a planetary “savings account” that absorbed the occasional dry season, avoiding a water crisis. “One of the central stories of the 2025 report is what is happening to that savings account? And the simple answer is that we are depleting it,” she told journalists in Geneva.
Groundwater reserves are equally stretched and have been in decline since 2014, WMO’s report states, with nearly two-thirds of monitored wells worldwide showing levels lower than the historical norm and indicating a shift “further toward deficit…not recovery”.
“At the same time, we are seeing more water-related disasters,” Ms. Saulo said, while also stressing that the currently strengthening El Niño “will increase the risk of drought in some areas, and flooding in others”.
Glaciers disappearing
In 2025, for the fourth consecutive year, every major glaciated region on Earth lost ice mass, leading to short-term hazards including floods and long-term water insecurity, according to WMO.
Responding to a question about whether the changing global water cycle might have contributed to the deadly Nepal-China flooding disaster, Ms. Saulo explained that melting ice and rock was just one factor in the chain of events that ultimately sent a massive and deadly wall of water and debris downstream on 26 August, killing at least 1,367 people.
“You asked if it could happen again? Absolutely; the problem in this region is that there’s 63,700 glaciers at the last count,” she told a Press Conference in Geneva. “Even if you’re looking with remote sensing with satellites at these glaciers, you might see some faults, you might see some slight shifting, that does not mean necessarily catastrophic collapse. So, in order to plan for this, it’s very, very difficult. But the international community is looking very hard at ways in which we can bring people together to solve some of these monitoring issues.”
Data indicates that glaciers shrank between 2023 and 2025 with cumulative losses of 1,400 gigatonnes of water – or about one third of annual fresh water needs.
Every major glacier region on Earth lost ice for the fourth consecutive year.
“All 19 glacier regions around the globe lost ice; in Central Asia, Iceland, the Russian Arctic and western Canada and the United States, it was among the three worst years on record,” said Wayne Jenkinson, WMO’s Director of Hydrology and Cryosphere.
Some regions with smaller glaciers such as Central Europe, the Caucasus, the western Canada and the United States may already have reached “peak water”, Mr. Jenkinson warned.
“After this point, the glacier gives less meltwater each year simply because there is less ice left to melt. That matters for every community downstream that relies on water during hot, dry summers,” he explained.
Narelle van der Wel, WMO’s Head of Cryosphere Monitoring, Predictions and Services, stressed that while some further glacier loss is unavoidable, the eventual scale of the decline is not predetermined.
“Some glacier loss is inevitable, but total loss of glaciers is not yet inevitable,” she said, pointing to emissions reductions as central to limiting future losses.
Preparing for moving baselines
The report does not attribute every observed change to climate change alone. WMO says pressure on water resources and natural variability also contribute.
Mr. Jenkinson said governments need to prepare for “moving baselines” as historical patterns become less reliable.
“The situation 30 years ago is not where we are today,” he said. Countries, he added, need to prepare “for those changes that have really already arrived”.
ends