UN Human Rights Council

Fifty organisations urge the UN Human Rights Council to urgently convene a special session to address an unprecedented escalation in mass unlawful killings of protesters in Iran.

At a time of financial strife and ongoing reform for the organisation, States have adopted a 2026 budget cutting 117 jobs at the UN’s Human Rights Office. The final budget endorses proposed cuts that disproportionately target human rights, imperilling the UN’s ability to investigate grave abuses, and advance human rights globally.

Led by Chile, 41 countries warned that proposed budget cuts under the UN80 initiative would severely weaken an already underfunded UN human rights pillar. As negotiations kick off in New York, ISHR urges States to prevent disproportionate cuts to human rights and ensure the international human rights system remains credible, effective and responsive.

ISHR delivered a statement during the organisational meeting of the UN Human Rights Council on 8 December 2025. Read the full statement below.

A coalition of 25 civil society organisations urges the Human Rights Council to pursue long-term, well-resourced reforms that strengthen—rather than shrink—its ability to respond to human rights crises.

During the 38th Human Rights Council special session on the human rights situation in and around El Fasher, in the context of the ongoing conflict in Sudan, ISHR delivered a joint statement with Sudanese Women’s Rights Action, and the Regional Coalition for Women Human Rights Defenders in South West Asia and North Africa.