The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Edited News , Press Conferences , Images | HRC
Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel
At UN, war crimes probe pledges to continue to work for all impacted by Hamas-Israel conflict
As President Trump launched the international Board of Peace plan for Gaza on Thursday, top independent rights experts tasked by the UN Human Rights Council with investigating grave abuses linked to the Hamas-Israel war pledged to continue their work seeking justice and accountability for all.
“The Board of Peace has been set up pursuant to a plan that was submitted to the Security Council that has been voted upon and accepted,” said Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and in Israel. “As a Commission of Inquiry, we see our task as investigating into violations of human rights. And that task we understand to be the mandate that the UN has given us - and we will continue with that mandate.”
The Commission of Inquiry – one of the Human Rights Council’s top investigative mechanisms - was set up by the forum’s 47 Member States in May 2021. In November last year, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 2803 welcoming the establishment of the Board of Peace to redevelop Gaza.
Last September, the Commission’s then Chair, former UN human rights chief Navi Pillay, declared that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in response to Hamas-led terror attacks that killed some 1,200 people in Israel in October 2023, sparking the war. Israel strongly denied that claim.
“We need to investigate violations of human rights by all duty-bearers and in both territories,” said Mr. Muralidhar, who expressed hope that the Commission’s earlier findings “hopefully will feed into some adjudicatory system to deliver lasting justice to the people in those in these two territories”.
On the agenda this year, the Commission plans to investigate “attacks by armed Palestinian militias on others within these two territories”, he continued, before stressing the independent nature of the panel.
Responding to questions about the Board of Peace, the chief investigator said that he expected the peace plan it was pursuing “to accommodate the interests of all the people in the conflict zone”.
At a press conference in Geneva, the panel of independent human rights experts – who do not work for the UN and are not paid for their work – also condemned the reported killing of three Palestinian journalists in central Gaza in a reported Israeli airstrike on Wednesday.
“When you're killing a journalist, it means you have something to hide, because if you have nothing to hide, you are going to call the journalist so that they look at what is happening and tell the world,” said Florence Mumba, Commissioner. “Because without journalists, many people in other corners of the world wouldn't know what is happening. So, we feel concerned about that disruption of the work of the journalists and we do hope as a Commission that journalists will not be deterred.”
Commission of Inquiry on OPT including East Jerusalem and Israel
TRT: 2’33”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 22 JANUARY 2026 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
Speakers:
- Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel;
- Florence Mumba, Commissioner;
- Chris Sidoti, Commissioner.
SHOTLIST
- Exterior wide, UN Geneva flag alley.
- Wide, UN Geneva Press room, podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Commission: “We need to investigate violations of human rights by all duty-bearers and in both territories. For instance, we will be looking at even the attacks by armed Palestinian militias on others within these two territories; so, we wish to emphasise that this is an independent investigating body.”
- Wide, podium speakers, journalists.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Commission: “The Board of Peace has been set up pursuant to a plan that was submitted to the Security Council that has been voted upon and accepted. As a Commission of Inquiry, we see our task as investigating into violations of human rights. And that task we understand to be the mandate that the UN has given us and we will continue with that mandate.”
- Medium-wide, TV screens showing podium speakers.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Srinivasan Muralidhar, Chair of the Commission: “We expect the peace plan to accommodate the interests of all the people in the conflict zone. And we don't find anything there that can possibly hinder the work of this Commission and we would expect, as we always did earlier, the complete cooperation of all the authorities in both territories of Israel and Palestine.”
- Medium-wide, podium speakers, journalists.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Chris Sidoti, Commissioner: “Israel needs to think very carefully before it rejects the work that UNRWA has done, the important work that has relieved Israel of its obligations; and of course, there will be consequences for human rights because of what UNRWA has done; children have a right to education, all people have a right to the highest attainable standard [of] physical and mental health.”
- Medium-wide, podium speakers, TV screen showing speaker, photographer.
- SOUNDBITE (English) – Florence Mumba, Commissioner: “When you're killing a journalist, it means you have something to hide, because if you have nothing to hide, you are going to call the journalist so that they look at what is happening and tell the world. Because without journalists, many people in other corners of the world wouldn't know what is happening. So, we feel concerned about that disruption of the work of the journalists and we do hope as a Commission that journalists will not be deterred.”
- Medium, journalist.
- Medium, photographer.
- Medium, journalist.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNIFIL
UN peacekeepers are supporting civilians who’ve chosen to stay in the south amid deadly dangers from Israel-Hezbollah clashes, UNIFIL spokesperson Kandace Ardiel tells us.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , WFP
Middle East war fallout: Hundreds of thousands flee Lebanon to Syria; vital food aid blocked – UN agencies
The trauma of mass displacement and humanitarian supply chain disruptions throughout the world are among the devastating impacts of the war raging in the Middle East, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | IOM , UNHCR , UNOG , WFP
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the spokespersons and representatives of the United Nations Refugee Agency, the World Food Programme, and the International Organization for Migration.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNRWA
End-of-tenure press briefing by the outgoing UNRWA Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA
Bitterness, sadness and pride for UNRWA staff, says departing chief
Asking the softly spoken, veteran humanitarian worker Philippe Lazzarini how he feels as he comes to the end of his second term as the head of the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, is perhaps an unfair question.
1
1
1
Edited News | IFRC , UN WOMEN , UNHCR , UNICEF , WHO
Middle East war causes civilian terror and disrupts aid, but some relief efforts resume.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | UNICEF , UN WOMEN , UNHCR , IFRC , IOM , WHO
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired a hybrid press briefing, which was attended by the spokespersons and representatives of the United Nations Refugee Agency, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the World Health Organization, the International Organization for Migration, UN Women, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk addressed the Human Rights Council, delivering a video statement on the strike that hit a girls school in Minab, Iran recently, calling for accountability and protection of children.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
A new UN Human Rights report published on Tuesday details the human rights impacts of the expanding reach of gangs in Haiti. According to data verified by the Office, at least 5,519 people were killed in Haiti, and 2,608 were injured between 1 March 2025 and 15 January 2026.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights spokesperson Marta Hurtado on Tuesday described the deadly impact of drone strikes in Sudan.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO , OHCHR
Sudan: Hospital strike highlights surge in drone attacks on civilians
The death toll from a horrific attack on a hospital in Sudan’s Darfur has risen further, amid a “sharp increase” in drone attacks against civilians this year, UN agencies said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Press Conferences | HRC , ILO , OHCHR , UNHCR , WHO
Alessandra Vellucci, Director of the United Nations Information Service (UNIS) in Geneva, chaired the hybrid briefing, which was attended by spokespersons and representatives from the United Nations Refugee Agency, the World Health Organization, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Human Rights Council and the International Labour Organization.