UN rights chief expresses support for US-proposed Gaza ceasefire deal

The US said it wants the nine-member UN Security Council to adopt a resolution backing the proposal.

By REUTERS

JUNE 4, 2024 13:16

Footage of Hamas terrorists using UN facilities for cover and transport, May 14, 2024 (photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT) — Footage of Hamas terrorists using UN facilities for cover and transport, May 14, 2024

(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)

United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk on Tuesday expressed his support for a US-proposed ceasefire deal for the conflict in Gaza, describing the situation in the Palestinian territory as "beyond catastrophic."

Turk said norms and standards on the conduct of war had been brutally violated in Gaza, and any initiative that can lead to an end in hostilities was welcomed.

"We can only hope that is achieved because of the humanitarian situation... we don't even know how to describe it anymore. It is beyond precarious. It is beyond catastrophic," Turk told a press conference at the end of a two-day visit to Malaysia.

A UN Security Council resolution

AMBASSADOR GILAD Erdan holds up photos of women hostages, showing the how they looked before they were taken captive on October 7 and how they look in captivity, during an addresses to the UN General Assembly in January. (credit: Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

The United States said on Monday it wants the nine-member UN Security Council to adopt a resolution backing the proposal outlined by President Joe Biden to end fighting between Israel forces and Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the US, France, Britain, China or Russia to pass.