The UN, Peace Week, and the Middle East

Geneva recently hosted the Peace Week annual forum. Inside Geneva asks what’s the point, especially when there seems to be so much conflict still going on.

“What we have to deal with is the immense stupidity of the wars that currently are in place. And here we are having to deal with wars of a sort that were better found in the history books devoted to the 20th century and ought not to have a place in the 21st,” says Zeid Ra’ad al Hussein, former United Nations Human Rights Commissioner. 

The UN is supposed to be able to prevent, and end conflict. How is it doing?

Richard Gowan, UN director at the International Crisis Group: “I think the UN high command on the one hand, and the Israelis on the other hand, have just decided that in rhetorical terms their relationship cannot be saved. And they are laying into each other in very firm language.”

What about individual governments, including Switzerland’s?

“Now is simply not the time to be further suffocating the human rights community in Israel and Palestine. The presence of armed conflict makes human rights defenders work more, not less, important. This is the exact wrong moment to stop supporting civil society,” says Erin Kilbride, a researcherat Human Rights Watch. 

Are politics getting in the way of humanity?

“There are two problems here: the first is the difference between humanitarian and political. And in a situation of war, which we’re in now, it’s very difficult to make that distinction,” adds Daniel Warner, a political analyst. 

Join host Imogen Foulkes on the Inside Geneva podcast to listen to the full interviews. 

Please listen and subscribe to our science podcast -- the Swiss Connection. 

Get in touch!

Thank you for listening! If you like what we do, please leave a review or subscribe to our newsletter.