The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip will dominate the spotlight at the 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council, which begins next Monday in Geneva, Switzerland. Several debates are scheduled on developments in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The 55th session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), which will take place from February 26 to May 5, was scheduled this Wednesday at a press conference by the body’s new president, Moroccan Ambassador Omar Zniber, who was elected last month for a one-year term. and who will chair the Council for the first time on Monday.
The hearing will begin Monday morning with testimony, including via videoconference, from U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, United Nations General Assembly President Dennis Francis and United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
At a time when the Gaza Strip is plunged into a catastrophic humanitarian situation following Israeli attacks and when much of the international community is expressing deep concern about Israel’s announced intention to carry out an offensive on Rafah, a city located in the south of the Palestinian territory. , next to the closed border with Egypt, where almost one and a half million people are concentrated, it will be an inevitable topic of the meeting.
“This issue is extremely concerning given the gravity of the situation and the humanitarian catastrophe that has occurred since October 7. [data do ataque do grupo islamita Hamas em Israel que provocou a ofensiva israelita na Faixa de Gaza]. As President, I can only encourage the Council to act to put an end to this humanitarian catastrophe, with concern for all victims on all sides,” Omar Zniber said this Wednesday at a press conference held in Geneva.
Answering a question about the possibility of holding a special session of the UN Human Rights Council on the situation in Gaza, Zniber did not rule out such a scenario, but said that there was no point in holding a session without the prospect of achieving “tangible results.” and recalled that several discussions have already been planned on this issue.
Indeed, in accordance with the agenda of the current 55th session, during the week of 29 February, the Council will hold an interactive dialogue on the report of the High Commissioner on the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including East Jerusalem, and the commitment to ensure accountability and justice. .
On March 26, there will be an “interactive dialogue” with the UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, Italian Francesca Albanese, who has been banned from entering Israel since last week for claiming that the Hamas attacks on October 7 were caused by Israeli oppression.
Also on the afternoon of 26 March there will be a presentation of the reports of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General on the human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories, as well as a general debate on this agenda item.
At a press conference this Wednesday, the new CDH president called his “top priority” his mandate to “reduce tensions” within the Council and build bridges for dialogue.
“I think that, first of all, it is necessary to reduce the tensions that are undermining the work of the Council. As we all know, there have been confrontations in recent years that have had an impact on the Human Rights Council. noticeable tension, both in the debates and in the decisions taken by the Council,” he noted.
Thus, Omar Zniber emphasized that his “first priority” is to carry out “preventive diplomatic actions aimed at encouraging dialogue and building bridges within a framework of mutual respect.”
The Human Rights Council, established in 2006 by the UN General Assembly and supported materially, technically and secretarially by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, is an intergovernmental body of the United Nations system consisting of 47 states elected by a majority of the 193 states of the United Nations General Assembly responsible for the promotion and protection of all human rights throughout the world.
The term of office of each member is three years. Portugal was a member of the Human Rights Council from 2014 to 2017.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.