UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has denounced the "indescribable suffering and wholesale destruction" in Gaza, saying he is "horrified" by the use of genocidal rhetoric by senior Israeli officials.
"Israel’s mass killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, its infliction of indescribable suffering and wholesale destruction, and its commission of war crime upon war crime are shocking the conscience of the world," Turk said on Monday during his address at the 60th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Defining the besieged Palestinian enclave as "a graveyard", the UN rights chief underlined that the region is "crying out for peace."
"I am horrified by the open use of genocidal rhetoric and the disgraceful dehumanisation of Palestinians by senior Israeli officials," Turk said.
He reiterated that Israel has a legal obligation to take the steps ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to prevent acts of genocide, punish incitement to genocide, and ensure enough aid reaches Palestinians in Gaza.
"Further militarisation, occupation, annexation, and oppression will only feed more violence and retribution," Turk warned.
"We need action now to end the carnage," he underlined, adding that the international community is failing in its duty and "we are failing the people of Gaza."
Rejecting "inaction" over Gaza, he said it is not an option, as he also noted that arms supplies to Israel that risk violating the laws of war must end.
