Amman, Feb. 27 (Petra)-- The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, on Friday denounced the escalating threats to women’s rights worldwide, highlighting the widespread prevalence of femicide and shocking abuses revealed in high-profile cases, including that of convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as well as cases in multiple other countries.

Addressing the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Türk criticized "social systems that silence women and girls" and allow powerful men to abuse them with impunity.

Speaking before the United Nations’ top human rights body, he described violence against women including femicide as "a global emergency," according to the European news network Euronews.

Türk stressed that "such horrific abuses are enabled by social systems that silence women and girls and shield powerful men from accountability," underscoring the urgent need for states to investigate all alleged crimes, protect survivors, and ensure justice without fear or favoritism.

He also expressed deep concern over the growing attacks targeting women in public life, including online abuse, noting that "every woman politician I meet tells me she faces misogyny and online hate." Concluding his remarks, the UN rights chief reiterated his warning about the alarming spread of violence against women, pointing out that in 2024 alone, "around 50,000 women and girls were killed worldwide, most of them by members of their own families." //Petra// MF