GENEVA

The UN human rights chief on Tuesday issued a stark warning about the global surge in gender-based violence in conflict zones, describing it as a "shameless repudiation of the basic rules of warfare."

"Gender-based violence in conflict, post-conflict and humanitarian settings is rising," Volker Turk told the Human Rights Council, stressing that the full scale remains undocumented due to attacks on humanitarian workers and restricted access in many conflict areas.

He cited thousands of cases documented by his office and UN commissions in places including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory, Ukraine, and Haiti.

"In Sudan, gang rape and other forms of conflict-related sexual violence are pervasive," he said, adding that in West Darfur and other areas, victimizing women has been used often as a "deliberate weapon of warfare" in ethnically motivated attacks.

Turk welcomed a new decree in Haiti establishing two specialized judicial units to fight sexual violence, calling it "critical progress," but warned that globally "most perpetrators of gender-based violence continue to go scot-free."

"These are massive and brutal sexual attacks. They should shock the conscience of every human being," he said.

The high commissioner criticized recent cuts to global aid budgets, which he said are limiting support for survivors and undermining prevention efforts, including police training.

Turk also voiced frustration over states' failure to match their commitments with real action. Despite repeated acknowledgments that sexual violence in conflict undermines peacebuilding and reconciliation, he said few perpetrators are brought to justice, and the root causes -- such as gender inequality and harmful norms -- remain unaddressed. Survivors, he added, are too often left without adequate support, while women's voices in peace processes continue to be sidelined.

“We are still not addressing the pain and trauma of survivors with anything close to an appropriate level of support,” he said. "This needs to be our utmost priority."