Gaza, 13 March 2025 – At the 58th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC 58), Al Mezan strongly denounced the international community for its failure to prevent and stop Israel’s ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza. Through multiple interventions and at one side event, we reiterated the urgent need for decisive action to hold Israel accountable and to put an end to ongoing atrocities. 

Interactive Dialogue with the High Commissioner for Human Rights

On 27 February 2025, during the Interactive Dialogue the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on his report on the “Human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and the obligation to ensure accountability and justice” (A/HRC/58/28), Al Mezan highlighted the climate of impunity perpetuated by the Israeli legal system and the international community's failure to take meaningful action to hold Israel accountable. We emphasized:

“There is no accountability for Palestinians within the Israeli legal system. Decades of systematic injustice have shown that Israel's domestic mechanisms serve to shield perpetrators, not deliver justice to victims of international crimes. Investigations—on the rare occasions when they occur—are designed to absolve rather than convict. The Israeli legal system has never delivered justice for Palestinians and never will.

Over the past year, the International Court of Justice has issued three provisional measures orders addressed to Israel. The Court has also issued a landmark advisory opinion affirming the illegality of Israel’s continued presence in the occupied Palestinian territory. Yet, Israel continues to violate these rulings with total impunity, as the international community fails to enforce them.”

Joint Side Event on Genocide and Accountability

On the same day, Al Mezan participated in a joint side event organized with Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Al-Haq titled: “Israel’s Assault Against Palestinians in Gaza and Genocide: Facts, Legal Findings, and the Urgency of Accountability.”

In their remarks, Al Mezan’s representative emphasized the urgent warning on the risk of genocide in Gaza issued by Palestinian human rights organizations on 13 October 2023. They highlighted how UN Special Procedures, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and international law and genocide experts quickly recognized this risk, reinforcing the legal obligation of states to act to prevent genocide in Gaza. The discussion also addressed South Africa’s landmark case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which, in January 2024, affirmed the plausibility of genocide and has since resulted in three provisional measures orders—orders that Israel continues to violate with impunity.

Annual Panel Discussion on Early Warning and Genocide Prevention

On 5 March 2025, Al Mezan took the floor during the Annual Panel Discussion on Early Warning and Genocide Prevention, delivering a powerful statement on the international community’s failure to uphold its responsibility to prevent and then stop genocide in Gaza. It stated:

“In the first week of Israel’s assault on Gaza, it became clear that this was unlike anything we had seen before. All signs were there from the start: dehumanizing rhetoric, the deliberate targeting of civilians and life-sustaining infrastructure, mass forced displacement, and the weaponization of water and food. Israeli officials have publicly uttered dozens of genocidal statements, openly calling for the destruction of Gaza and its people. These were not just words, but declarations of intent. The international community was repeatedly warned, including by three provisional measures ordered by the ICJ. And yet, States not only failed to stop atrocities in Gaza, but many actively enabled them by providing Israel with weapons and political and diplomatic cover.”

Al Mezan also acknowledged the failure of the former UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, urging the next appointee to uphold the mandate with impartiality, urgency, and moral clarity.

Interactive Dialogue on Children and Armed Conflict

On 12 March 2025, Al Mezan participated in the Interactive Dialogue with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, drawing urgent attention to the catastrophic impact of Israel’s genocide on Palestinian children in Gaza. In its statement, Al Mezan highlighted that more than one million Palestinian children have endured unimaginable horrors that no child should ever face:

“At this very moment, Israeli authorities are intentionally starving Palestinian children. Despite countless calls from the States present in this room for the unrestricted entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, Israel continues to weaponize water, food, and electricity while keeping the crossings with Gaza closed for the tenth consecutive day.”

With several Palestinian children already dead from malnutrition and dehydration, Al Mezan posed a critical question:

“How many more must die before the international community takes concrete action to stop Israel and hold its leadership accountable?”

Al Mezan’s Call to Action and Continued Engagement at HRC 58

The time for words has passed. The international community must move beyond mere statements of condemnation and take urgent and concrete measures to stop the ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people. This includes holding Israel and its leadership accountable, enforcing sanctions and a two-ways arms embargo, and reassessing bilateral agreements with Israel. Every moment of inaction enables further atrocities. The world must act now to stop Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people.

As part of its continued engagement at HRC 58, Al Mezan will be actively involved throughout the week of Item 7. On 25 March 2025, Al Mezan will organize an in-person side with Addameer and the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) titled “Forgotten and Dehumanized: Israel's Systematic Human Rights Violations Against Palestinian Prisoners and Detainees”, which will take place at 15:00 in Room XXV of Palais des Nations in Geneva.