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UN human rights chief warns of impunity for perpetrators as he seeks extra funds
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FILE - U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR), Volker Turk, speaks during a press conference in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on June 26, 2025. - photo by AP Photo, File
GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. human rights chief said Thursday that his office is in “survival mode” as he presented an appeal for $400 million to meet its estimated needs this year, after funding cuts last year hurt its work in 17 countries including Colombia, Myanmar and Chad. Volker Türk laid out his office's needs after the United States and some other traditional top donors in the West cut back their outlays for humanitarian aid and many U.N.-related organizations in 2025, warning of damage to its monitoring of rights worldwide. “These cuts and reductions untie perpetrators’ hands everywhere, leaving them to do whatever they please,” he told diplomats at his office's headquarters overlooking Lake Geneva.