Türkiye's U.N. envoy on Wednesday stressed that protecting civilians in armed conflicts is a collective responsibility, calling for the consistent application of international humanitarian law and urgent attention to crises from Gaza to Sudan.
"Protection of civilians in armed conflict is a shared responsibility and must remain a top priority for the international community," Türkiye's permanent representative to the U.N., Ahmet Yıldız, said during an open session of the U.N. Security Council titled Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict.
Warning against double standards in the application of international law, Yıldız said, "Selective approaches to international law undermine the credibility of the international legal system and erode confidence in multilateral institutions."
Referring to Cyprus, he said Turkish Cypriots between 1963 and 1964 "experienced a period marked by political exclusion, violence, displacement and isolation," adding that atrocities against Turkish Cypriot civilians were "well documented in U.N. archives."
Turning to the Middle East, Yıldız said humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip "remain dire" despite the cease-fire and called for progress toward a two-state solution.
