UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk warned of a growing erosion of international legal standards amid a record number of global conflicts, while expressing concern that the suffering of Palestinians is often overlooked in European political debates.
Addressing members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs in Brussels on Thursday, Turk said the world is currently facing more than 60 conflicts, many of which receive little public attention despite their devastating humanitarian consequences.
“There’s one thing that all these conflicts have in common: it is the disregard, and I would say the blatant disrespect of international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” he said.
He warned that accepting civilian casualties that are disproportionate to military objectives risks creating a dangerous precedent.
“If one accepts civilian casualties in a way that is no longer in any way proportionate to any military objectives that are being pursued, you create a new normal and a new normal that could be used by others who are waging war,” he said.
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‘Some countries act with impunity’
Turk also warned that growing impunity and the perception that international law is optional pose risks far beyond individual conflicts.
