Volker Türk
Volker Türk is an Austrian lawyer and diplomat who serves as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Before taking up that role, he served as Assistant Secretary-General at the UN Human Rights Office and headed the UNHCR representation in New York. Earlier in his career he held senior posts in Austria's Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs.
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UN report documents over 1,000 cases of conflict-related sexual violence in Ukraine since 2022
The UN Human Rights Office has documented around 1,004 cases of conflict-related sexual violence in Ukraine between 24 February 2022 and the end of July of the reporting year, attributing 89% of cases to representatives of Russian authorities. The report, based on confidential interviews with hundreds of victims as well as court documents and official records, details specific methods including rape, genital mutilation, and the use of Soviet-era "tapik" field telephones to deliver electric shocks to victims' genitals. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk called for the immediate cessation of hostilities and a full Russian withdrawal from Ukraine.