Rights groups urge UN Human Rights Council special session on Ethiopia
Civil society organizations urged the UN Human Rights Council on October 8, 2026, to hold a special session on Ethiopia and commission a rapid expert assessment.
In short
- Civil society organizations urged the UN Human Rights Council on October 8, 2026, to hold a special session on Ethiopia and commission a rapid expert assessment.
Civil society organizations called on the United Nations Human Rights Council on October 8, 2026, to convene a special session on Ethiopia’s renewed conflict, according to an open letter published by Physicians for Human Rights.
The appeal, also reported by Addis Standard in an AddisMizan source item carried by AllAfrica, asks the council to address the human rights consequences of renewed hostilities. The organizations warn of a risk that crimes documented during the 2020–2022 conflict could recur.
They propose a resolution asking the council’s president to appoint an advisory panel drawn from existing independent UN and African human rights experts. The proposed panel would assess the situation quickly, prepare a report and recommend further action.
The letter also calls for accountability for those responsible for committing, ordering or facilitating violations. These are requests by civil society organizations; the letter does not establish that the council has convened a session or approved the proposed panel.
Primary source: [Physicians for Human Rights, October 8, 2026](https://phr.org/our-work/resources/hrc-phr-joins-civil-society-call-for-a-special-session-on-ethiopia/).
