Hundreds of employees at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) have called for the ongoing conflict in Gaza to be formally recognised as genocide. In a letter to OHCHR chief Volker Türk, more than 500 staff members cited the scale and systematic nature of documented violations as meeting the legal criteria for genocide, warning that failure to act undermines the credibility of the UN and the international human rights system.

The letter drew parallels with the UN’s widely criticised inaction during the 1994 Rwandan genocide, which resulted in over a million deaths. Türk, who has previously condemned the violence in Gaza and highlighted the risk of atrocity crimes, acknowledged the concerns, calling on staff to remain united in responding to the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.

Israeli authorities dismissed the appeal, labelling it “baseless” and motivated by hostility, while human rights groups and UN experts have repeatedly raised alarm over mass killings, forced displacement, and starvation. Since October 7, 2023, Palestinian health authorities report nearly 63,000 dead, more than 159,000 injured, thousands missing, and hundreds of thousands displaced, with famine claiming over 300 lives, including children. The call from OHCHR staff reflects growing international pressure for accountability and urgent action to halt the humanitarian disaster.