Volker Turk | DD News

July 25, 2026 10:32 AM

UN assembly approves mandate extension for rights chief, despite US warning

The U.N. General Assembly on Friday voted overwhelmingly to extend the term of U.N. Human Rights chief Volker Turk for four more years, despite opposition from Russia and Israel and a U.S. threat to reassess its funding and engagement. Turk, an outspoken critic of Russia's war in Ukraine and Israel's conduct in Gaza, who has also called for investigations into deaths in U.S. immigration custody, had drawn strong opposition from all three countries over his willingness to challenge major powers....

May 11, 2026 5:21 PM

UN warns drone attacks drive surge in civilian deaths in Sudan

The United Nations human rights chief warned on Monday that widening and intensifying violence in Sudan, as well as the rising use of drones, could lead to more death and displacement. "The international community is on notice that, unless action is taken without delay, this conflict is on the cusp of entering yet another new, even deadlier phase," the high commissioner for the U.N. Human Rights Office, Volker Turk, said in a statement. Turk warned that armed drones have now become the leading...

March 3, 2026 5:36 PM

UN calls for investigation into deadly strike on school in Iran

The U.N. human rights office on Tuesday urged what it called the forces behind a deadly attack on a girls' school in Iran to investigate and share insights into the incident, without saying who it believed was responsible. "The High Commissioner (Volker Turk) calls for a prompt, impartial and thorough investigation into the circumstances of the attack. The onus is on the forces that carried out the attack to investigate it," U.N. human rights office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani told a Geneva ...

February 6, 2026 2:44 PM

UN rights chief appeals for $400 million as crises mount and funding shrinks

U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk appealed for $400 million on Thursday to address mounting human rights needs in countries such as Sudan and Myanmar, after donor funding cuts drastically reduced the work of his office and left it in "survival mode". The U.N. office is appealing for $100 million less than last year, after a significant scale back of its work in some areas due to a fall in contributions from countries including the U.S. and Europe. "We are currently in survival mode, deliveri...

January 23, 2026 10:22 PM

UN human rights chief urges US to uphold international law in immigration crackdown

The U.N. human rights chief urged the Trump administration on Friday to ensure that its migration policies respect individual rights and international law, citing concerns over arbitrary and unlawful arrests and detentions. "Individuals are being surveilled and detained, sometimes violently including at hospitals, churches, mosques, courthouses, markets, schools, and even within their own homes, often solely on mere suspicion of being undocumented migrants," the United Nations High Commissioner...

December 10, 2025 4:50 PM

UN human rights office in ‘survival mode’ amid major funding cuts

United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk said on Wednesday that his office was in "survival mode" due to major funding cuts from global donors, while rights violations and needs in conflict-affected areas surge. "Our resources have been slashed, along with funding for human rights organisations - including at the grassroots level - around the world. We are in survival mode," the high commissioner for the U.N. human rights office (OHCHR) told reporters. OHCHR has $90 million less in fundin...

October 29, 2024 11:37 PM

Search committee for Election Commission to be declared soon: Asif Nazrul, Law Adviser of Bangladesh

A search committee has been formed to establish the Election Commission, Asif Nazrul, Law Affairs Adviser to the Interim Government of Bangladesh, announced on Tuesday. "The interim government’s journey towards holding the next general election has begun. This will be an extraordinary election, and the voter list will be updated," Nazrul told the media in Dhaka following a meeting with the visiting UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk. The High Commissioner is on a two-day offic...

October 29, 2024 7:26 PM

Bangladesh: UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk arrives in Dhaka

The United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, arrived in Dhaka early this morning on a two-day official visit. During the visit, Turk will hold a number of meetings with top government officials and civil society representatives. The high commissioner is scheduled to meet with Prof. Muhammad Yunus, Chief Adviser of the interim government of Bangladesh, said a press release disseminated by the UN Resident Coordinator office in Dhaka. The UN HR chief will also hold meet...