[JURIST] Newly appointed UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein [official website] called Monday on the international community to work to end the conflicts in Syria and Iraq. In his first speech [text] before the UN Human Rights Council [official website] Al Hussein said that “dedicated efforts are urgently needed to protect religious and ethnic groups, children—who are at risk of forcible recruitment and sexual violence—and women, who have been the targets of severe restrictions.” Also in his statement, the rights chief condemned the extremist group, Islamic State (IS) [BBC Backgrounder; JURIST news archive], stating that if they were to govern it would be “a harsh, mean-spirited, house of blood, where no shade would be offered, nor shelter given.” Beyond the crisis in Iraq and Syria [NYT feature], Al Hussein also called for the end of “persistent discrimination and impunity” that has marked the Israeli/Palestinian conflict stating that “current and future generations of Palestinians … have a right to live normal lives in dignity.” While the rights chief acknowledged that Israelis have the right to be “free and secure from indiscriminate rocket fire,” he called for the end of Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip and the end of illegal settlements.

Concerns over severe human rights violations have continued to grow as the Syrian Civil War and the current crisis in Northern Iraq have begun to overlap. Earlier this month Amnesty International [advocacy website) accused [JURIST report] IS of carrying out ethnic cleansing “on a historic scale” in Northern Iraq. Also in September the UN’s top advocate for children affected by war expressed concern [JURIST report] about the expansion of IS in Syria and Iraq and the increase in violations against children there. Last week a group of UN human rights experts, including the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression, urged stronger protection [JURIST report] for journalists covering conflicts.