During Tuesday's Human Rights Council debate in Geneva, the United Nations rights chief said Israel undermined regional peace and stability in last week's attack on Hamas leaders, who were in Qatar to negotiate a ceasefire.
"Israel's strike on negotiators in Doha on 9 September was a shocking breach of international law, an assault on regional peace and stability, and a blow against the integrity of mediation and negotiating processes around the world," U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk told delegates.
The airstrike risked undermining negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza's nearly two-year-old war, he said.
The strike, which Hamas says killed five of its members but not its leadership, has prompted U.S.-allied Gulf Arab states to close ranks. Arab and Islamic states held a summit in Doha on Monday to back Qatar.
Israel's ambassador in Geneva, speaking to reporters before the session, which Israel did not attend, called the debate a one-sided attack on Israel.
"This marks yet another shameful chapter in the Human Rights Council's ongoing abuse serving as a platform for anti-Israel propaganda, while ignoring the brutal realities on the ground and the atrocities committed by Hamas," Daniel Meron said.
Qatar urged council members to hold Israel accountable. The Israeli strike on Doha amounted to "state terrorism" and a direct threat to regional stability, Minister of State for International Cooperation, Mariam bint Ali bin Nasser Al Misnad, told the Tuesday's debate.
Saudi Arabia's envoy in Geneva, Abdulmohsen Majed Binkhothaila, said, "Israeli actions are no longer sporadic violations, they constitute a systematic behaviour based on the indiscriminate killings ... and forced displacement in violation of all international norms and laws."
Algeria and Pakistan joined Qatar in condemning Israel, while the European Union expressed its solidarity with Qatar.
Separately on Tuesday, a U.N. Commission of Inquiry concluded on Tuesday that Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, accusations Israel strongly rejected as it launched a long-threatened ground assault on Gaza.
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Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday that Kyiv wants peace but will not surrender to Russia, as foreign leaders joined Independence Day events marking 35 years since Ukraine’s independence.
Oil prices fell after the U.S. expanded economic sanctions on Iran, as Tehran vowed to retaliate and warned it had tools to respond, raising concerns over potential disruption to regional oil supplies.
Only four commodity vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, following 13 transits a day earlier, as disruptions continue to restrict traffic through the key energy chokepoint.
A newly created pro-government political party has secured a commanding victory in Kazakhstan's snap parliamentary election, according to exit polls, strengthening President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's influence at a pivotal moment in the country's political transition.
Kyiv has recently received a small number of U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of downing Russian ballistic missiles, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. It comes as Britain and France pledged stronger military support for Ukraine.
Kyiv has recently received a small number of U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of downing Russian ballistic missiles, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. It comes as Britain and France pledged stronger military support for Ukraine.
Canada has announced nearly $20 billion in retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods and billions in support for workers and businesses, escalating its trade dispute with Washington after President Donald Trump's latest duties took effect.
Pakistani exporters are facing soaring shipping costs to the U.S., with freight rates more than tripling on some routes as the Iran-U.S. conflict drives up war-risk insurance and fuel costs.
The trial of a Libyan man accused of building the bomb that destroyed Pan Am Flight 103 over the Scottish town of Lockerbie in 1988, killing 270 people, has been postponed by a U.S. federal judge.
France and Saudi Arabia have agreed on plans for a $7 billion manga-themed amusement complex near Paris, inspired by the hugely popular Japanese franchise Dragon Ball Z.
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