Middle East: UN rights chief warns against wider war, appeals for urgent de-escalation

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights called on Monday for an urgent de-escalation in the Middle East as tensions mount in the wake of recent deadly attacks linked to the war in Gaza, which is about to enter its 10th month. 

“I am deeply worried about the rising risk of a wider conflict in the Middle East and plead with all parties, along with those States with influence, to act urgently to de-escalate what has become a very precarious situation,” Volker Türk said in a statement.

He stressed that “human rights - first and foremost the protection of civilians - must be the top priority.”

Avoid further ‘spiralling’

Mr. Türk noted that over the past 10 months, civilians - mostly women and children - have endured unbearable pain and suffering as the result of bombs and guns.

“Everything, and I mean everything, must be done to avoid this situation spiralling further into an abyss that will only have even more terrible consequences for civilians,” he said.

The human rights chief is the latest UN official to join Secretary-General António Guterres in calling for de-escalation as tensions continue to rise following the spate of attacks.

In late July, 12 civilians, mainly children and teenagers, were killed after a rocket struck a football field in the Israeli-occupied Golan. 

Days later, a senior Hezbollah commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, followed by the killing of a Hamas political chief in Tehran, Iran.  

Last Friday, UN Middle East envoy Tor Wennesland said he had “engaged in critical discussions with the relevant parties and member states in the region, including Lebanon, Egypt and Qatar, in support of regional de-escalation.”