US withdrawal from UNHRC emboldens war crimes in Gaza
The United States and Israel’s decision to withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) weakens international accountability and undermines justice for Palestinians in the wake of Israel’s assault on Gaza.
Recently, US President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw the US from the UNHRC and the UN Relief Agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), both of which have been severely restricted by Israel’s campaign of repression. Following this announcement, Israel’s Foreign Minister, Gideon Sa’ar, revealed that Israel would boycott the UNHRC, for reasons of alleged “antisemitism” – even though Israel is only an observer country at the UNHRC.
There has been widespread condemnation of the moves from human rights organisations and activists, warning that they could have grave consequences for Palestinian and global human rights processes.
According to the UN spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric UNHRC’s significance while commending UNRWA’s work in delivering “critical services to Palestinians” amid worries that Palestinians might lose access to nutrition, education, and healthcare. Representatives of rights groups from around the world took to social media to condemn the decisions.
Milena Ansari, Human Rights Watch researcher for Israel and Palestine, said that the UNHRC was “an important vehicle to promote and protect human rights and to hold states accountable for their actions, including gross and systematic rights violations”.
“While Israel is not a member of the Council, its ‘withdrawal’ is yet another move aimed at shielding itself from accountability and placing itself above the rule of law,”
Ansari also said.
Amnesty International said that the UNHRC was an “important forum to promote respect for human rights and to address violations of human rights”. “Israel’s decision not to engage with the Human Rights Council further underscores its blatant disregard for human rights obligations and more generally for multilateralism and international law,” the group stated.
“This message is detrimental to the universal value of international legal protection. Impunity for violations of international law must end, even more so in the face of Israel’s genocide in Gaza and decades of its apartheid regime against Palestinians and unlawful occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
President of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, Kerry Kennedy, stated that the US was “intentionally abandoning multilateral efforts to advance human rights” in a post on social media platform X.
“This renewed rejection of engagement sends a troubling message: the US is willing to step back from global human rights mechanisms rather than push for meaningful reforms, contributing to their erosion at a time when they are needed most,” she also said.
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign’s director, Ben Jamal, said that his organization had called on UK PMKeir Starmer to “challenge Trump’s egregious breaches of these principles” and take action against potential violations of international law.
“President Trump’s withdrawal from the UNHRC, while making an exemption to continue military funding to Israel, alongside his support for Israel’s illegitimate actions to disable UNRWA, are all indicative of a president intent on driving a wrecking ball through international law and fundamental principles of rights and justice,” he also said.
In a conflict of interest, the controversial moves were made as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was facing backlash over his visit to the White House despite being the subject of arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war offenses in Gaza since 7 October 2023.
