UN human rights chief Volker Türk, on Wednesday, issued a strong appeal for the fragile ceasefire in Gaza to be held amid delays to talks between Hamas and Israel on extending the truce into the second phase.

Addressing the Human Rights Council in Geneva on conditions inside the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Mr Türk condemned the Hamas-led terror attacks on Israel that sparked the war in October 2023.

Mr Türk also said there was no justification for Israel’s devastating military operations in Gaza, which have left more than 48,000 Palestinians dead, according to local authorities.

“At this tenuous moment, the world must ask itself how to resolve this decades-old conflict and stop the cycle of violence,” he said. “Any plans for a better future must deal with the past, so accountability and justice for violations are crucial.”

Mr Türk added that each phase of the ceasefire must be implemented “in good faith, and in full.”

He said it must be for the Palestinians themselves to determine their own future.

According to news reports, the delayed release by Israel of Palestinian prisoners is expected to go ahead imminently in exchange for the return of the bodies of four hostages.

Summing up the “raft of human rights violations” inside the Occupied Palestinian Territory and lack of accountability, he said there had been “an unprecedented disregard” for basic principles of international humanitarian law by both sides since the outbreak of hostilities in October 2023.

Mr Türk maintained there were serious doubts over Israel’s capacity and will to deliver full accountability, notably in relation to unlawful killings in Gaza and the West Bank.

With Hamas and other Palestinian militants who have taken and tortured hostages and fired indiscriminate projectiles into Israel – amounting to war crimes – there are concerns that they may also have committed serious breaches “including the intentional co-location of military objectives and Palestinian civilians.”

“Any attempts at shaping a peaceful future where such horrors do not recur must ensure that perpetrators are held to account,” Mr Türk said.

In an apparent response to the outlawing of the UN Palestine refugee relief agency, UNRWA, by Israel and the sanctions against the International Criminal Court by the U.S. earlier this month, the UN rights chief said “delegitimising and threatening international institutions that are there to serve people and uphold international law also harms us all.”

He also said any attempt to annex Palestinian land or “forced transfer” of civilians must be resisted.

“This is the moment for voices of reason to prevail, for solutions that will deliver justice and make space for compassion, healing and truth-telling,”  Mr Türk said.

(NAN)