Craig Mokhiber, director of the New York office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), left his position this Tuesday (31). In a letter, he said Gaza is a classic case of genocide.
“Once again we are seeing a genocide unfold in front of our eyes, and the Organization we serve seems powerless to stop it,” Mokhiber wrote to the UN High Commissioner in Geneva, Volker Turk.
He also said that the US, the UK and much of Europe “are fully complicit in this terrible attack” and that these governments are “actively weaponizing the attack, providing economic and intelligence support, and providing political and diplomatic cover for the atrocities of Israel”.
Mokhiber is 63 years old, a lawyer specializing in international human rights law and has worked for the UN since 1992. He led the development of the OHCHR’s original work on human rights-based approaches and served as senior human rights advisor in Palestine, Afghanistan and Sudan.
The UN informed The Guardian newspaper that Mokhiber had informed in March 2023 about his retirement, which comes into effect this Wednesday (1st). Regarding the statement by the now former director, the organization said that “the opinions contained in his letter made public are the personal opinions of the employee.”
Israel bombs Hamas targets in refugee camp in Gaza
