Geneva, Feb. 23 (SANA) U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Monday that human rights are under a “full-scale attack around the world,” saying the “law of force” is increasingly replacing the rule of law.
Speaking at the opening of the 61st session of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, Guterres said people are suffering twice — first from violence, repression and exclusion, and then from what he described as the international community’s indifference.
He said the erosion of human rights threatens peace, development, social cohesion and trust, warning that their collapse would undermine global stability.
Guterres pointed to what he called “flagrant violations of human rights, human dignity and international law” in the occupied Palestinian territories, cautioning that current developments risk derailing the two-state solution.
The decline in respect for rights is not confined to conflict zones, he said, but is occurring deliberately and strategically across the world.
He added that the crisis is compounding other global challenges, including climate disruption and the misuse of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, which he said can suppress freedoms and deepen inequality.
“The U.N. Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international law are not a menu from which leaders can pick and choose,” Guterres said.
On Jan. 22, Guterres warned that ignoring international law and applying rules selectively weakens the international system.
