Following its 78th session, the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights issued a call for inputs for a General Comment that will elaborate on the application of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) in situations of armed conflict. This is an important call for addressing major gaps in international humanitarian law (IHL) and international criminal law with significant implications for State responsibility and other areas of international law. The continuing and complementary application of human rights law and IHL during and after conflict has been well recognized. Indeed, human rights law applies at all times — whether in peace or in war.
However, the continuing application of the protection of economic, social, and cultural rights is less recognized than that of many civil and political rights during and after armed conflict, as increasingly evidenced by the massive destruction of housing, food systems, educational institutions, and civilian infrastructure in conflicts across Gaza, Lebanon, Ukraine, Myanmar, and Sudan. The impunity for such massive destruction can be seen in the paucity of legal proceedings for accountability before national or international tribunals. This unfortunate gap in the protection of economic, social, and cultural rights persists despite the fact that these rights are non-derogable during emergencies often proclaimed by States in the context of armed conflict. Thus, the Committee’s intention to develop this General Comment under the ICESCR is a welcome step to address an urgent need. As the former U.N. Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing, I submitted the following observations in response to the Committee’s call for inputs, drawing, inter alia, on applicable norms of international law and standards including the Draft Guiding Principles on Reconstruction in Conflict-affected Countries and Territories.
FEATURED IMAGE: People walk past destroyed homes on April 20, 2026 in Gaza City, Gaza. The homes were destroyed by Israeli airstrikes earlier in the war. Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images)