Health and Human Rights News
News to 20 March 2026
War in the Middle East is pushing the world toward a precipice
UN experts are calling for the end of US and Israeli attacks on Iran and Lebanon, which are “illegal under international law.” The experts added that while Iran has the right to self-defence, retaliatory strikes against civilian targets—including desalination infrastructure and residential towers in neighbouring Gulf countries—also violate international humanitarian law and must cease immediately. They highlighted serious concern at the likelihood that US demands for “unconditional surrender” and a broad disregard for international law would lead to protracted conflict and widespread human suffering and deplored the failure of the UN Security Council to fulfil its responsibilities for peace and security in the region. “This dereliction is irreversibly pushing the world towards a precipice.”
Over 3.2 million people now displaced in Iran
Human rights violations prior to the Israel-US war on Iran are now compounded by all parties’ failure to ensure basic civilian protection, warned the UN Special Rapporteur on Iran, Mai Sato, this week. Between 600,000 and one million Iranian households—up to 3.2 million people—are now temporarily displaced inside the country, according to UN High Commission on Human Rights. “If we put the people of Iran at the heart of any solution, the military escalation must stop and all parties must resume diplomatic dialogue immediately.”
UN: Another tragic chapter in Lebanon’s history is being written
Nearly 900 people, including 111 children and at least 16 medical staff, have been killed in Lebanon since 2 March, says the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Indiscriminate Israeli attacks continue to destroy civilian homes, hospitals, and other critical infrastructure, and Israel has extended displacement orders across southern Lebanon while destroying routes that would provide access to lifesaving aid. The office said, “Statements by Israeli officials threatening to impose the same level of destruction on Lebanon as inflicted in Gaza are wholly unacceptable.”
Drug rehabilitation center destroyed in Kabul
An estimated 400 patients were killed by a Pakistani air strike on a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul this week. The strike marks the most deadly attack in the three-week war between Pakistan and Afghanistan. UN High Commission for Human Rights is calling for the attack to be investigated promptly, independently, and transparently.
Drone attacks kill hundreds in Sudan
Human Rights High Commissioner Volker Türk condemned a surge in drone strikes in Sudan, noting that over 200 civilians have been killed by such attacks since 4 March. “It will soon be three full years since the senseless conflict in Sudan began, devastating millions of lives and livelihoods. Yet the violence, fuelled by these new technologies of war, simply keeps spreading. It is high time it came to an end. The Sudanese people have already suffered far too much.”
UN Expert: Do not abandon the people of Myanmar
The outgoing UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, Thomas Andrews, called on Human Rights Council members to help protect civilians in Myanmar. With lifesaving humanitarian aid under threat and international accountability mechanisms faltering, he urged governments to reject the junta which has “unleashed a spiraling humanitarian crisis in Myanmar, using hunger and deprivation as weapons of war. Nearly a third of Myanmar’s population is now in need of humanitarian assistance. More than 12 million people face acute hunger.”
Human rights concerns continue in Venezuela
High Commissioner of Human Rights Volker Türk advised the Human Rights Council this week that following the US intervention in Venezuela in January, human rights concerns have continued, with violations including arbitrary detention, limited access to civic space, and restrictions on health care, water, sanitation services, and food. He said the country’s future must be decided by its people alone, “The authorities, the opposition within and outside Venezuela, and all those with political responsibilities need to unite around human rights and put the people of their country first.”
Reduction in child mortality is slowing down
The pace of reduction in child mortality has slowed significantly since 2015, according to this year’s Levels & Trends in Child Mortality report. For the first time this annual UN report fully integrates estimates on the causes of death and estimates there were 100,000 deaths of children under 5 years of age directly caused by severe acute malnutrition (SAM). In addition to highlighting leading causes of death and noting regional differences, the report makes recommendations, urging governments, donors, and partners to re-accelerate progress by making child survival a political and financial priority.
UN Tax Convention submissions expose challenges
The latest round of state submissions on the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation shows a sharp divide between Global North and Global South ,according to the Center for Economic and Social Rights. High income countries are pushing for a high-level, non-binding instrument that defers to existing OECD frameworks, while middle- and low-income countries demand a treaty with real teeth and genuine reallocation of taxing rights. A full draft of the future treaty is expected to be published before member states meet again in New York in August for the 5th session of the Negotiating Committee.
Türk: AI poses serious risks to health rights
Speaking at University College London, Human Rights Chief Volker Türk discussed the human rights risks of artificial intelligence in the modern political landscape. He discussed AI’s environmental impact, consequences for the workforce, and its ability to spread disinformation. “From a human rights point of view, these are serious risks to our rights to life and health, our rights to privacy and freedom of expression, non-discrimination, and political participation. AI could massively exacerbate global inequalities, and affect the rights to work and to a healthy environment.”
See also: Special Section Big Data, Technology, Artificial Intelligence and the Right to Health, EDITORIAL Enter the Cyborgs: Health and Human Rights in the Digital Age, Sara L. M. (Meg) Davis and Carmel Williams, Vol 22/2, Dec 2020
England blocks gender-affirming hormone therapy
The National Health Service in England is no longer referring transgender youth for gender-affirming hormone therapy. Human Rights Watch claims medical experts have criticized the study upon which this policy is based and are questioning its review of evidence. The new policy is now undergoing a 90-day consultation period, and Human Rights Watch is urging NHS England to reverse the decision, which will deny youth their rights to health, bodily autonomy, and non-discrimination.
See also: Denying Pediatric Gender‑Affirming Health Care Is a Human Rights Violation, VIEWPOINT, Swarupa Deb, 17 February 2026
Millions may lose access to sexual and reproductive health care in the US
“On 31 March, millions of Americans may lose access to birth control and STD screening services provided by the Title X program, a $286m annual public health investment that provides sexual and reproductive care for Americans, mostly women, who are low-income or lack health insurance,” reports the Guardian. The Trump Administration’s Health and Human Service failed to put the processes in place in time for the service providers to apply for the grants that keep the services operating.
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