Hundreds of staff at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) have asked Volker Turk to explicitly describe the war in Gaza as an "ongoing genocide," according to a letter seen by Reuters.
In a letter sent on Wednesday, the employees said they believe the nearly two-year-old war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza meets the legal criteria for declaring genocide, citing the scope, scale and nature of the violations documented there.
“OHCHR has a strong legal and moral responsibility to condemn acts of genocide,” said a letter signed by the Staff Committee on behalf of more than 500 staff members, asking Turk to take a “clear and public position.”
“The failure to condemn the ongoing genocide undermines the credibility of the UN and the human rights system itself,” it added.
The letter also calls for the moral failure of the international body that did not do enough to stop the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, when more than a million people were killed.
Israel has previously rejected accusations of genocide in Gaza, citing its right to self-defense after the deadly Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, in which, according to Israeli figures, 1.200 people were killed and 251 people were taken hostage.
The Geneva-based agency was founded in 1993 with the mission to promote and protect human rights for all.
The appeal by Turk, an Austrian lawyer who has worked for the United Nations for decades, was supported by about a quarter of its 2.000 employees worldwide.
Some human rights organizations, such as Amnesty International, have already accused Israel of genocide, and independent UN expert Francesca Albanese has also used the term, but not the United Nations itself.
UN officials have said in the past that it is up to international courts to determine the existence of genocide.
South Africa filed a genocide case over Israel's actions in Gaza before the International Court of Justice in 2023, but the case has yet to be heard - a process that could take years.
“The situation in Gaza has shaken us all to the core,” said OHCHR spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani, highlighting the difficult circumstances the office faces as it tries to document the facts. “There have been and will continue to be internal discussions on how to move forward,” she added, referring to the letter.
Turk, who has repeatedly condemned Israel's actions in Gaza and warned of the growing risk of crimes against humanity, said the letter raised important questions. "I know we all share a sense of moral outrage at the horrors we are witnessing, as well as frustration at the international community's inability to end this situation," he said in a copy of his response seen by Reuters, urging staff to "remain united as an Office in the face of such adversity."
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