CAP Liberté de Conscience has joined a coalition of non-governmental organizations in a direct appeal to the United Nations, calling for immediate mechanisms to address the lethal crackdown on protesters in Iran. The organization is a signatory to the petition entitled “Global Coalition of 30 NGOs Demands UN Emergency Action to Stop Mass Killings of Iranian Protesters,” coordinated by UN Watch.
The petition, publicly released on January 13, 2026, and signed by a coalition of thirty international human rights groups, urges the United Nations Human Rights Council to convene a special session. The central demand is the establishment of an independent international investigative mechanism tasked with documenting violations, identifying those responsible, and preserving evidence for future accountability proceedings (UN Watch, 2026).
This collective NGO action aligns with escalating concerns voiced by UN officials. On January 16, 2026, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a stark statement on the situation. “The killing of peaceful demonstrators must stop,” the rights chief said, further calling on the Iranian authorities to “respect the rights of all individuals to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression” (United Nations, 2026). The High Commissioner’s office emphasized the principle of accountability, stating that “those responsible for the unlawful use of force must be held to account” (United Nations, 2026).
The coalition’s petition frames the situation as one requiring urgent multilateral intervention. It argues that the scale and severity of alleged violations, including the reported use of lethal force against unarmed protesters, necessitate a dedicated international response beyond routine monitoring. The call for a special session and an investigative body is rooted in precedents set by the Human Rights Council for other country situations where domestic accountability pathways are deemed absent or ineffective.
By adding its signature to this petition, CAP Liberté de Conscience underscores its institutional focus on the protection of fundamental rights, including the freedom of conscience and expression, within international human rights frameworks. The organization’s participation signals a commitment to multilateral advocacy, leveraging UN procedures to seek redress and prevent further violence.
The current appeals to the UN system highlight the ongoing gap between international condemnation and on-the-ground developments in Iran. The joint NGO petition and the High Commissioner’s simultaneous statement represent coordinated pressure points from civil society and the UN’s own human rights architecture. The effectiveness of this pressure will be measured by the willingness of member states of the Human Rights Council to act on the call for a special session and the subsequent response of the Iranian authorities to both international diplomacy and internal demands for reform.
Sources:
UN Watch. (2026, January 15). Global Coalition of 30 NGOs Demands UN Emergency Action to Stop Mass Killings of Iranian Protesters. Retrieved from https://unwatch.org/global-coalition-of-30-ngos-demands-un-emergency-action-to-stop-mass-killings-of-iranian-protesters/
United Nations. (2026, January 16). Iran: “The killing of peaceful demonstrators must stop,” UN rights chief says. UN News. Retrieved from https://news.un.org/en/story/2026/01/1166752
