UN rights chief decries ’horrifying’ suffering in Gaza

The U.N. human rights chief said Israel’s warfare in Gaza is inflicting “horrifying, unconscionable suffering” on Palestinians and urged government leaders to exert pressure on Israel’s government and the militant group Hamas to end it.

Volker Türk made the comments at the opening of the latest Human Rights Council session on Monday, in a broad address that also raised concerns about escalating conflict between Iran and Israel, the fallout from U.S. tariffs, and China’s human rights record, alongside wars and conflict in places like Sudan and Ukraine.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, who has regularly spoken out about bloodshed in Gaza and called for the release of Israeli hostages held by armed Palestinian militants, used some of his most forceful words yet to highlight the Mideast violence.

“Israel’s means and methods of warfare are inflicting horrifying, unconscionable suffering on Palestinians in Gaza,” Türk told the 47-member-country body, which Israeli authorities have regularly accused of anti-Israel bias. The Trump administration has kept the United States, Israel’s top ally, out of the council proceedings.

Israel’s military campaign since the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks in Israel has killed over 55,300 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. It says that women and children make up most of the dead, but it does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.Palestinians wait for food at a distribution point in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, June 2, 2025.