UN Assembly Urged to Defend Human Rights System

Human Rights Watch has called on world leaders gathering for the United Nations General Assembly in New York to commit to defending human rights and countering attempts to undermine accountability for grave international crimes. The annual meeting runs from September 22 to 28, 2026.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is scheduled to deliver the first speech on September 22, followed by US President Donald Trump. Leaders from Türkiye, France, the United Kingdom, and Japan will also speak on the opening day. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will participate virtually after the US refused to grant him and other Palestinian officials travel visas.

Assault on International Institutions

Louis Charbonneau, the UN director at Human Rights Watch, stated that the UN and other organizations created to protect human rights are under attack from countries that had pledged to defend them. He urged all UN member states to condemn attempts by the United States, Russia, China, and others to dismantle the international human rights system and destroy avenues for accountability.

Key issues expected on leaders' agendas include the global impact of the US and Israel's war with Iran, Israeli forces' abuses in Gaza and the West Bank, Russian violations in Ukraine, and concerns about artificial intelligence and climate change. The organization also called for accountability for atrocities in Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar, Haiti, and Afghanistan.

Campaign Against the International Criminal Court

A central concern is a US campaign to dismantle the International Criminal Court. The Trump administration's effort seeks to protect US and Israeli officials from the court's scrutiny. In 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

The US campaign includes punitive sanctions against ICC officials, judges, three Palestinian human rights groups, and a UN expert. Human Rights Watch warns this threatens victims' access to justice globally. The ICC's ongoing investigations cover alleged crimes in Myanmar, Sudan, Afghanistan, the Philippines, and Ukraine. The court has also issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and senior Russian officials for alleged crimes in Ukraine.

Human Rights Watch, alongside three other organizations, has sued the Trump administration in US federal court over these sanctions. The group urges governments to use the General Assembly to pledge support for the ICC and commit to measures mitigating the impact of US attacks.

Undermining Rights and UN Resources

Member states are also urged to resist efforts to undermine the rights of refugees, migrants, women and girls, and LGBT people. They should defend existing protections for equality and actively resist attempts by some countries to roll back international norms on gender equality within UN mandates.

While many delegations will focus on peace and development, Human Rights Watch says leaders must commit to ensuring the UN's human rights work is adequately resourced. The UN faces a prolonged liquidity crisis, largely caused by the US refusing to pay its full assessed contributions and cancelling most voluntary funds.

The US recently paid $800 million in dues, a fraction of the roughly $4 billion it owes. China has repeatedly exacerbated the crisis by failing to pay on time. Together, the US and China account for nearly half of the UN's regular and peacekeeping budgets.

Future Accountability and Treaties

Countries should condemn efforts to flout UN sanctions regimes and arms embargoes. As the Security Council holds informal polls for a new secretary-general to replace Antonio Guterres, whose term ends December 31, Human Rights Watch says the next UN chief must prioritize human rights and reinvigorate peacekeeping to protect civilians.

The next leader must also press governments to pay their dues on time. Member states should explore better ways to hold defaulting governments accountable.

To counter global impunity, countries will soon negotiate a new treaty to prevent and punish crimes against humanity. These crimes include murder, torture, rape, persecution, enforced disappearance, extermination, enslavement, and apartheid. UN member countries should support this effort, as these are among the gravest offenses under international law.

Louis Charbonneau concluded that the UN and the international human rights system can only survive the current assault if governments take urgent and strong action to defend them.