As the world marks the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan renewed his criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza, saying the scale of civilian deaths shows the principles of global rights have been “severely undermined.”
In a statement released Wednesday by the Directorate of Communications to mark Human Rights Day, a day celebrated to honor and protect human rights worldwide, Erdoğan said more than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in what he called a genocide, pointing out that the violence in Gaza and across the occupied Palestinian territories continues despite international pressure.
“Unfortunately, the atrocities in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories persist despite all the efforts of the international community,” he said. Erdoğan added that restoring “just and lasting peace” depends on strengthening the cease-fire, which Türkiye helped facilitate, and advancing a two-state solution.
Erdoğan also commemorated the 77th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted on Dec. 10, 1948, calling it a document that still embodies the world’s “shared values and achievements,” even as its principles are increasingly violated.
Drafted after World War II, the 30-article declaration lays out basic freedoms including equality before the law, freedom of expression and belief, protections from torture and discrimination, and rights to education, work and a standard of living. While not legally binding, it has shaped modern human rights laws and inspired numerous treaties and national constitutions.
But Erdoğan said those values are “losing ground” globally. “The devastation we see in Gaza is a stark reminder,” he said, adding that rebuilding the enclave “is the collective responsibility of all humanity.”
Türkiye has long backed the two-state solution – the internationally endorsed plan for an independent Palestine alongside Israel – describing it as the only viable path to security and peace for both peoples.
Erdoğan accused Israel of showing “disregard for law and norms,” saying it has violated the cease-fire and killed at least 370 Palestinians in attacks since Oct. 11. He called for increased international pressure to prevent Gaza from “being dragged back into conflict.”
Meanwhile, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said human rights cannot be applied “selectively,” stressing that Palestinian refugees are entitled to the same protections as all people. In a statement on X to mark Human Rights Day, the agency warned that exceptions to universal rights would endanger the declaration’s principles and international law.
“Human rights must be respected without exceptions,” the agency said.
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş also issued a Human Rights Day message, saying the world faces a “deep need” for a new global understanding of justice.
“Spreading a new sense of global justice is no longer a choice but a necessity,” he wrote on social media. “Only those who believe all humans are created equal in their fundamental rights and freedoms can bring true peace to the world.”
Kurtulmuş said Türkiye will continue to lead efforts that prioritize fairness, freedom and human dignity. He said he hopes for a future “in which the suffering of all oppressed people, especially in Palestine, comes to an end.”
Derya Yanık, chair of the Turkish Parliament’s Human Rights Committee and a ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) lawmaker, also marked Human Rights Day by warning that global conflicts, especially in Gaza, show how fragile the world’s commitment to universal rights has become.
“This tragic picture proves that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights means nothing if it remains just a text hanging on a wall,” she told Anadolu Agency (AA) in an interview on Wednesday. “In every war, in every mass attack, in every person starved, that document – the common signature of humanity – is wounded.”
“In Gaza, tens of thousands of children have been killed,” she said. “Even today, after a cease-fire, the destruction, hunger and fear of the past two years remain vividly alive.”
She added that threats to human rights are not confined to war zones. Rising cultural racism, xenophobia and Islamophobia – particularly in Europe –show how selectively rights are applied, citing attacks on mosques, desecration of the Quran and hate speech targeting Muslims and migrants.
Yanık said Türkiye rejects double standards and continues humanitarian diplomacy from Gaza to Ukraine and Africa to the Balkans. She said state agencies and NGOs work to reach vulnerable populations worldwide, while her parliamentary committee cooperates with international organizations and investigates petitions at home on issues ranging from prisons to migration and children’s rights.
“Türkiye will continue to raise its voice against injustice and defend human rights not only in words but in practice,” she said.
As Israel’s military campaign in Gaza continues, two leading human rights scholars warn that the crisis has exposed a historic breaking point for the international system – one that can only be addressed, they say, through ending double standards and fundamentally restructuring the U.N. Security Council (UNSC).
Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch (HRW), and Susan Akram, director of Boston University’s International Human Rights Clinic, told Anadolu Agency (AA) for Human Rights Day that the war in Gaza highlights long-standing flaws in global governance, the paralysis caused by the UNSC’s veto system and the critical role of civil society amid political inaction.
Akram, who heads one of the U.S.’ top human rights clinics, said the world’s faith in universal rights is the only path to saving humanity, but the current U.N. system undermines that mission.
“The core problem lies within the U.N., which was established to defend and protect human rights,” she said. “But the U.N. was structured to let only the victors of World War II control decisions on war and peace and accountability for human rights abuses.”
She said these five permanent members have repeatedly exploited their power to turn the U.N. into an instrument of political interests. “For the U.N. to survive as a credible body for peace and security, and for its goal of ensuring equal human rights for all, the UNSC’s structure must change.”
Akram pointed to Israel’s policies of occupation, apartheid and genocide as one of the world’s deepest fault lines, arguing that the Palestinian issue remains “one of the last colonial projects supported by major powers for more than 70 years.”
She said the intensifying violence in Gaza is happening with the “full complicity” of Western powers, especially the U.S. “This demonstrates the U.N.’s absolute failure and the UNSC suppressing the legitimate demands of the Palestinian people for self-determination.”
Akram said she supports various reform proposals from inside and outside the U.N., including giving the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA) the power to amend the U.N. Charter when necessary.
“The UNGA is the democratic organ of the U.N.,” she said. “Every member state has one vote, and we have seen repeatedly that the will of the world’s majority is reflected in its resolutions.”
She emphasized the value of the Uniting for Peace mechanism, noting that after the 1956 Suez crisis, it was the UNGA – not the UNSC – that authorized an international peacekeeping force in Gaza, where it served for 10 years.
Akram added that Global South nations and countries representing most of the world’s population are pushing for greater representation on the UNSC, a move she said should be supported to expand decision-making and diverse voices.
Roth said the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights continues to articulate the rights people still need and demand – from protections against torture and extrajudicial killings to the right to health care, housing and food.
Despite atrocities in Sudan, Gaza and Ukraine, he argued that the declaration’s relevance remains intact. “When a murder occurs on the street, does that mean criminal law is abandoned – or violated?” he said. “Likewise, even when standards are violated, the world’s reactions show we are still trying to uphold these principles.”
Roth noted that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is attempting to halt acts of genocide in Gaza, while the International Criminal Court (ICC) has sought arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for the starvation of civilians.
But he said these efforts fall short of stopping the violations.
On Gaza, Roth said U.S. President Donald Trump pressured Netanyahu to stop bombings and starvation but continued U.S. military aid, enabling expanded “systematic attacks on Palestinians, mass ethnic cleansing or an indefinite apartheid.”
Roth said the UNSC’s veto system has rendered it largely ineffective in enforcing human rights standards. Still, he argued that abandoning the U.N. is not an option.
Roth said the ICC has immense potential, but its work was constrained by sanctions imposed by Trump. “These were scandalous sanctions –essentially saying, ‘How dare you investigate or criticize Israelis? If you do, I will punish you.’”
Although European governments opposed the sanctions, he said their main priority was ensuring Trump’s continued support for Ukraine, which prevented a stronger pushback.
“There is no magic solution,” Roth said. “What we need is strong public pressure on governments to defend human rights more consistently.”
