UN Human Rights Council hears grim updates on Ukraine, Gaza and global racism

This article is published in association with United Nations.

The UN Human Rights Council on Thursday heard sobering briefings on the human rights situations in Ukraine and Gaza, along with a call to confront structural racism and intersectional discrimination worldwide.

Escalating conflict in Ukraine

In an oral update, Ilze Brands Kehris, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, reported a sharp escalation in hostilities in Ukraine.

Civilian casualties have surged, with April to June seeing nearly 50 per cent more deaths and injuries compared to the same period in 2024.

“More than 90 per cent of these casualties occurred in territory controlled by Ukraine,” she said, attributing the spike in part to intensified Russian drone and missile attacks.

Attacks using airburst warheads and repeated strikes on hospitals have instilled “terror and anxiety” among urban populations, she added. A June 16-17 nighttime attack in Kyiv killed more civilians than any other assault in the past year.

While ceasefire negotiations have produced some humanitarian gains – such as the exchange of prisoners of war and the return of deceased soldiers – Ms. Kehris underscored harrowing conditions in detention.

Over 117 former Ukrainian POWs interviewed by the UN rights office, OHCHR, reported torture, including sexual violence, in Russian captivity. Though less widespread, similar abuses have also been documented in unofficial Ukrainian detention facilities, prompting calls for transparent investigations.

The report also noted ongoing human rights violations in territories occupied by Russia, including restrictions on civic space and the exercise of freedom of expression.

“Peace is more imperative than ever,” Ms. Kehris said, reiterating calls for an immediate cessation of hostilities in line with international law.

Structural racism and intersectionality

Ashwini K.P., Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, delivered a thematic report focused on intersectionality as a tool for racial justice.

Drawing from experiences of Black feminists and expanded by studies focusing on Dalit, Indigenous, Muslim and Roma community members, the concept of intersectionality was presented as essential to dismantling systemic discrimination.

“Women of African descent, caste-oppressed communities, Roma, Arab and Muslim women, and other marginalized groups are disproportionately impacted due to overlapping forms of discrimination,” Ms. Ashwini said.

Her report detailed how states can integrate an intersectional approach, emphasising data disaggregation, participatory policymaking, legal recognition of multiple discrimination and historical accountability.

Ms. Ashwini highlighted the importance of reparatory justice for communities affected by colonialism and slavery and called on states – particularly those historically complicit – to implement bold reforms.

© UNICEF

People search through the rubble of a destroyed building in the central Gaza Strip.

Deepening crisis in Gaza

Francesca Albanese, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, also reported to the Council, with grim update on Gaza.

She described conditions as “apocalyptic” and reported over 200,000 people killed or injured since 7 October 2023, when Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups attacked Israeli communities – killing at least 1,200 people and taking more than 250 as hostages.

“In Gaza, Palestinians continue to endure suffering beyond imagination,” Ms. Albanese said, describing the Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation as a “death trap – engineered to kill or force the flight of a starved, bombarded, emaciated population marked for elimination.”

She also accused Israel of using the conflict as an opportunity to test new weapons and technology against the population of the enclave “without restraint”.

“The forever-occupation has provided an optimal testing ground for arms manufacturers and big tech with little oversight and zero accountability – while investors, and private and public institutions have profited handsomely,” she said.

“We must reverse the tide,” Ms. Albanese urged, calling on Member States to impose a full arms embargo on Israel, suspend all trade agreements and investment relation and enforce accountability, “ensuring that corporate entities face legal consequences for their involvement in serious violations of international law.”

Independent rights experts

Special Rapporteurs are independent human rights experts appointed and mandated by the Human Rights Council – the UN’s highest intergovernmental forum on human rights.

Forming a part of its Special Procedures, Special Rapporteurs and other independent experts are mandated to monitor and assess the rights situation in certain thematic or country situations.

They work in their individual capacity, are not UN staff and do not receive a salary.