On September 9, 2024, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk emphasized the urgent need to end the ongoing Gaza war, which has claimed nearly 41,000 Palestinian lives since October 2023. He criticized Israel’s alleged “blatant disregard” for international law in the occupied Palestinian territories and urged nations to act on the U.N. Security Council and International Court of Justice’s decisions. Turk’s speech at the U.N. Human Rights Council session in Geneva also addressed global issues such as the death penalty, gender equality, and political scapegoating of migrants.