Human Rights Watch on Wednesday called for stronger and more effective commitments from world leaders convening at the United Nations General Assembly from September 22 to 30 in safeguarding the sanctity of the UN from the interference of external political power in its role of protecting human rights and promoting international justice.

The interim executive director of Human Rights Watch, Federico Borello, stated:

World leaders should pledge action to ensure the world body has the resources and political support it needs to carry out its lifesaving human rights and humanitarian work around the world – in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Haiti, and elsewhere people are in need.

The urgent call comes amid a worsening humanitarian crisis and human rights violations worldwide, such as in Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Haiti, the Democratic Republic of Congo, etc.

The worsening crisis in Palestine prompted a summit that will be presided over by French President Emmanuel Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the day before the General Assembly’s annual general debate. This summit is the latest in a series of UN resolution mandated discussions about Palestine and the possibility of a two-State solution, with Resolution ES-10/24, adopted at the Tenth Emergency Special Session in September 2024 and Resolution 79/81 which was adopted in December 2024 providing logistical support and empowering Member States, observer entities, UN bodies, and international organizations to contribute substantively to find a peaceful solution to the unrest in the Middle East.

Recent retaliation from Israel-affiliated countries, such as the US, where sanctions were placed on International Criminal Court (ICC) officials, outspoken Palestinian organizations, and UN Human Rights Council special rapporteur Francesca Albanese, a prominent figure in criticizing Israel’s military ambitions and violations of international law committed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, has earned widespread condemnation. These sanctions, primarily born out of the Teump administration’s desire to halt the issuance of ICC arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for their complicity in atrocities committed on Palestinian soil, have since been criticised by ICC President Tomoko Akane as “draconian economic sanctions…as if it was a terrorist organization.”

The US President Donald J. Trump ordered a “review” of US contributions to the UN. This decision could negatively impact UN monitoring and investigations, with grim implications for countries such as Sudan, where the ongoing civil war has paralyzed the economy, and Haiti, where gang violence remains rampant.