Category: Press Releases

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 September 2025.

UK Statement for the Item 4 General Debate. Delivered by the UK’s Permanent Representative to the WTO and UN, Kumar Iyer.

Thank you Mr Vice President,

The Taliban continue their assault on the rights of the Afghan people. Women and girls are barred from education and most employment, and face severe restrictions on nearly all aspects of their lives. Religious minorities are persecuted, journalists and activists face intimidation, and arbitrary detentions, torture, and public executions continue. We urge the Taliban to respect the rights of all Afghans.

In Iran, the arrest of over 20,000 people since the 12-day war in June is of serious concern. Many of these arrests are a means to scapegoat and target already marginalised groups, including members of the Baluchi and Kurdish ethnic minorities, and Baha’i, Christian and Jewish religious minorities. The continued use of the death penalty as a political tool is appalling and we reiterate that we oppose the death penalty in all circumstances.

In China, we remain deeply concerned about religious and cultural restrictions in Tibet, unjust detention of activists like Sophia Huang, and widespread censorship and surveillance. China must honour its human rights commitments and restore fundamental freedoms. In Hong Kong, we take reports about Jimmy Lai’s health conditions very seriously. We continue to press for an independent assessment. Jimmy Lai’s prosecution is politically motivated; he should be released.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 September 2025.

UK Statement for the Interactive Dialogue on the High Commissioner’s Report on Nicaragua. Delivered by the UK’s Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders.

We are grateful to the High Commissioner for his report.

The continued deterioration of human rights in Nicaragua is deeply concerning. The report reinforces the need for sustained international scrutiny of the systemic dismantling of democratic institutions and repression of civil liberties.

The Nicaraguan authorities’ regrettable decision to withdraw from the UN Human Rights Council and other international human rights mechanisms must not deter that scrutiny.

The arbitrary expulsion of citizens, denial of re-entry, and deprivation of nationality are unacceptable and must end. 

Moreover, the reformed cybercrime law will enable the arbitrary criminalisation of peaceful expression, contributing to a climate of fear, censorship and of intimidation particularly for journalists in Nicaragua.

The report also sheds further light on violations of the rights of indigenous peoples and people of African descent, as well as evidence of the suppression of religious freedom.

To the Office of the High Commissioner,

We would welcome your views on how the international community can best support implementation of your recommendations and ensure accountability for these serious violations.

Thank you.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 September 2025.

Statement by The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper, Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, at the UN Security Council meeting on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Yesterday, alongside other ministers here in New York this week, I hosted a session to hear from doctors who have recently returned from Gaza, and the stories they told will stay with me forever.

One told of the screams of toddlers. And a scream of a toddler who she had operated on without full anaesthetics, and how she hoped and prayed that he would not feel pain.

Another told of the seriously malnourished pregnant women, affecting their babies.

And they talked about doctors and nurses whose family members were killed, but who still came back to work in hospitals in unimaginable conditions to help others.

And they told of how the absolute basics of modern medicine, like antibiotics and anaesthetics, things that we around this Council table take for granted for ourselves and our loved ones, were unavailable. Blocked and denied.

And we say the words “humanitarian crisis,” but this is what it means: the pain and the screams of a toddler who cannot get the basic health care that they need. 

And only 18 out of 36 hospitals in Gaza now remain open – all of them struggling to operate amidst severe shortages of fuel, medicine, equipment, and staff.

Over 1,700 healthcare workers have been killed in Gaza, more than 300 detained. This is what the catastrophic collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system looks like. 

And as we are gathered here, Israeli forces are escalating the conflict in Gaza City, pounding more homes into rubble, sending frightened families scattering. 

It is incomprehensible. It is inhumane. It is utterly unjustifiable. And it must end. 

All that this action from the Israeli Government will do is make a catastrophic humanitarian situation worse.

More healthcare in crisis.

Harder than ever to get desperately needed aid to those who need it.

More innocent children enduring a man-made famine.

More civilians killed.

But making it harder to get the remaining hostages out.

Hostages who are still being held, who were seized by Hamas on the barbaric terrorist attack of October 7th  and are still being held in the most horrendous conditions, prolonging the anguish for their families, and I reiterate our condemnation of Hamas and that barbaric terrorism on October 7th. 

I met with some of the UK-linked hostage families again last week. Their ask of all of us is to keep the hostages at the forefront of our minds, to do everything we can, to give their loved ones the chance of coming home, and to achieve a ceasefire that gives them the chance to do that.

And that must be our task.

We know what needs to be done. We need a ceasefire now. We need the release of all the hostages. We need the immediate restoration of aid and support for medical care. And we need a broader framework for the lasting peace. 

And I welcome and support mediation efforts being made by the United States, Qatar and Egypt to seek an end to conflict and to seek peace. 

We know too that Gaza cannot be seen in isolation from the West Bank. The Israeli government is tightening its stranglehold on the Palestinian economy and continuing to approve illegal settlement construction, including just recently in the E1 area of East Jerusalem, which is a further blow to the viability of the two-state solution, and we urge Israel to reverse these plans.

After two years of bloodshed, I believe the world is united in wanting this awful war to end.

United in wanting all the hostages released.

United in rejection of any role for Hamas in the future of Gaza or the future of a Palestinian state.

United in wanting Israel to unblock aid and end the humanitarian catastrophe.

And united in wanting a better and more peaceful future for the region, with the reconstruction of Gaza, the dignity for its people, and a new era of relations to support their collective security.

And that future must be based on a two-state solution.

The UK’s historic recognition of the state of Palestine this week is part of our commitment to peace.

Part of acting to protect the viability of the two-state solution as the only path to a just and lasting peace and to security for Palestinians and Israelis alike. 

Part of rejecting extremist ideas on all sides, which involve too often fantasies of the destruction of the State of Israel or expulsion of the Palestinian population, we reject both of those.

And part of our wider effort to work with partners on a long-term peace, not just to halt the immediate crisis but an advance a pragmatic plan for what comes next.

None of this can happen without an immediate ceasefire, and that is where all of this has to start. 

One of the doctors yesterday described the impact on children of growing up in trauma and devastation. And those will be the consequences on generations to come if we do not act now. 

We owe it to all of those children growing up in Gaza, across Palestine, across Israel. 

We owe it to all of them to build a better future.

The time for peace is now.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 23 September 2025.

Syria Core Group Statement for the Item 4 General Debate. Delivered by the UK’s Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders.

Mr President,

This statement is made on behalf of six countries.

In April, this Council renewed the mandate of the Commission of Inquiry on Syria by a landmark consensus. The Commission continues to fulfil an important role to document human rights violations and abuses across the country. We appreciate the Syrian government’s facilitation and welcome the Commission’s report on the violence in the coastal region.

We welcome positive steps made by the government. Their investigation into the coastal violence, and the establishment of the Commissions on Transitional Justice and Missing Persons, are important steps towards justice and reconciliation.

However, challenges remain. The violence in Suwayda in July was horrific; attacks that threaten the peace, stability and territorial integrity of Syria are unacceptable. We welcome the establishment of an investigatory committee and the efforts to develop a roadmap to address the crisis in Suwayda as agreed by Syria, Jordan and the United States. 

Transparent and tangible action against all perpetrators is required. The justice system must serve all Syrians, regardless of their religious or ethnic background. We note the role that the OHCHR, the IIIM and IIMP can play, and encourage further cooperation to complement national efforts. 

We reaffirm our strong commitment to the full respect of the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria. Now is the time to take the steps for an inclusive political process, which brings accountability and justice to all.

Thank you.