[JURIST] The UN Human Rights Council [official website] announced Wednesday that it will hold an emergency session on Friday to discuss the ongoing Middle East conflict [JURIST news archive] and its worsening impact on Lebanese citizens. Responding to a special request from Tunisia on behalf of the UN Group of Arab States and the Organization of the Islamic Conference [advocacy website], the Council decided [press release, DOC] to immediately convene a special session "to consider and take action on the gross human rights violations by Israel in Lebanon," including an Israeli airstrike on the Lebanese village of Qana [JURIST report] that killed at least civilians according to updated counts.

On Monday, the Council's Sub-Commission on the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights [official website] denounced [press release; JURIST report] the "massive denial of human rights" in the ongoing conflict in Lebanon and called on the UN Security Council [official website] to work toward a permanent solution in the volatile area. The UN News Centre has more.