WEB DESK: The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (UNHCR) has passed a resolution urging accountability for potential war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in the Gaza Strip, alongside a demand for a halt to all arms sales to Israel.
According to Al Jazeera, Friday’s vote marked the first instance of the UN’s leading rights body taking a stance on the nearly six-month conflict, underscoring concerns of “genocide” in a war that has claimed over 33,000 lives.
With 28 of the council’s 47 member states voting in favour, the resolution received opposition from six countries including the United States and Germany, while France, Albania, and 11 others abstained.
As per the reports, the council stressed that the vote was a necessary step to prevent further breaches of international humanitarian law and human rights abuses, citing the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) ruling in January, which warned of a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza.
According to the resolution, the World Court in March unanimously instructed Israel to ensure the prompt arrival of basic food supplies to Gaza, highlighting the worsening conditions and the spread of famine and starvation among Palestinians.
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Meanwhile, Marc Owen Jones, an associate professor of Middle Eastern studies at Hamad Bin Khalifa University in Qatar, described the resolution as symbolically significant, marking the first time the top human rights body has addressed the conflict.
The resolution, initiated by Pakistan on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states, drew strong criticism from Israel’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Meirav Eilon Shahar, who labeled it as a “stain” on the Human Rights Council and the UN.
The vote follows a previous UN Security Council resolution in March calling for a ceasefire. Despite mounting criticism over civilian casualties, some Western nations, including the United States, continue to supply lethal weapons to Israel.
The council’s resolution condemned the use of starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in Gaza, denouncing Israel’s denial of humanitarian access and obstruction of relief supplies crucial for civilian survival.
Moreover, the rights body censured Israel’s persistent refusal to cooperate with numerous investigations ordered by it, further deepening the scrutiny over the ongoing conflict.
