HE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani called on Human Rights Council to end the violations resulting from the illegal siege and the unilateral coercive measures taken by the siege countries against the Qatari people, and to hold accountable those responsible for these violations while compensating the victims.

Speaking on Monday during the high-level segment of the 37th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, HE the deputy prime minister and foreign minister said that he briefed the council during its previous session on the repercussions and violations of human rights due to the illegal and "unilateral coercive measures" taken by the siege countries against the Qatari people.

"This was reaffirmed in the last report of the technical mission of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)) after visiting the State of Qatar in November," HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said.

"It included an objective description of the grave and flagrant violations of human rights by the siege countries against the citizens and residents, be it in the State of Qatar or in their own countries, and this continues to this very day.

"Stemming from the just legal position of the State of Qatar and to protect its legitimate rights, I call from this rostrum the Human Right Council and all its mechanisms, especially special procedures, to shoulder their responsibilities and to work on putting an end to violation of human rights as a result of these racist unilateral coercive measures. Those who are responsible must be held accountable and victims must be compensated."

"It is very strange that the countries that have imposed these unilateral measures on my country are states that are co-sponsors of the Human Rights Council resolution on human rights and unilateral coercive measures. Some are members of this council.

"This strange behavior in dealing with the resolutions of this council shows grave contradiction between the convictions of these states and their positions in the council on the other hand. This undermines the credibility of these countries and also undermines the work of the council itself. We must work on saving the reputation and credibility of this council," HE the deputy prime minister and foreign minister added.

HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani expressed regret over the grave and flagrant violations of human rights in many regions of the world despite the increasing global interest in protecting these rights. 

HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said that the world faces serious challenges in the spread of armed conflicts and increasing unrest due to acts of violent extremism, fanaticism, and terrorism as well as the use of unilateral forcible measures that violate international law, human rights charters and the principle of peaceful relations between states. He explained that all these have a negative effect on human rights and deprive many individuals and communities of their fundamental rights and freedoms as laid down in the international human rights charters.

HE the deputy prime minister and foreign minister described what the Syrian people in Eastern Ghouta are exposed to by the current regime with the whole world witnessing as a stain on humanity and reveals the extent to which this regime is indifferent to international law and international humanitarian law in addition to the brutality of barbaric practices where human rights are being wasted.

He pointed out that the U.N. mechanisms for international peace and security had failed to do their part to protect the rights of the Syrian people. He called on the international community to take all necessary measures against the Syrian regime to implement the Security Council resolutions related to the ceasefire and the protection of the Syrian people in addition to intensify efforts to stop the systematic policy of killing, oppression, war crimes and crimes against humanity and to bring the perpetrators of these outrageous crimes to international justice.

HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani stressed the need for the international community, especially the Security Council, to shoulder its legal and moral responsibilities and to abandon selectivity in order to reach a political settlement for the Syrian crisis in accordance with the Geneva I statement to achieve the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people for freedom, justice, and dignity.

HE the deputy prime minister and foreign minister called on the international community to provide humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people in order to meet the urgent needs, stressing that the State of Qatar will spare no effort in providing assistance.

He also called on the international community to strive to protect the rights of the Palestinian people and realize the two-state solution agreed by the international community in accordance with the resolutions of international legitimacy, the Arab Peace Initiative and other international references, in addition to ending the occupation and establishing the State of Palestine on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.

HE Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said that the Palestinian people still live under occupation, adding that these oppressed people have gone through wars and afflictions.

He added that in addition to the fact that the occupation itself was a violation of the values of freedom and peaceful coexistence of human civilization, the decades of Israeli occupation had been accompanied by a wide range of illegal practices that constituted a clear violation of international law and relevant Security Council resolutions.

HE the deputy prime minister and foreign minister stressed the need for Israel to stop