“We are seeing massive violations of international human rights law, direct attacks on civilians and a flagrant failure to comply with international humanitarian law,” Beyani said. UN News recently. “The risk of atrocities being committed, and atrocities occurring, is very, very high.”
He cited worsening violence in Sudan as one of the most pressing examples. The Darfur conflict, first investigated by a UN commission in the 1990s, continues to worsen decades later. “Nothing has changed,” he said. “The fall of the civilian government has only exacerbated the crisis.”
Families fleeing violence in Darfur arrive at a camp for displaced people.
Early warning system
The Office for the Prevention of Genocide and the Responsibility to Protect functions as an early warning system within the UN. Alerts the Secretary-General, the Security Council and the wider United Nations system – in that order – when the risk of atrocity crimes, including genocide, is detected.
Drawing on the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and legal opinions on genocide-related court cases, the Office monitors and analyzes 14 factors ranging from armed conflicts involving ethnic or religious groups to hate speech and the collapse of the rule of law, among others.
Greek prefix genos (people, race or tribe) and Latin suffix cide (kill)
Under international law, genocide means any of the following acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such:*
- Kill group members.
- Causing serious bodily or mental harm to group members.
- Deliberately inflicting on the group living conditions intended to cause its total or partial physical destruction.
- Impose measures aimed at preventing births within the group.
- Forcibly transferring children from the group to another group
*Article II of the genocide convention.
When these risks show a violent pattern, Beyani issues warnings and coordinates responses with UN officials, maintaining close ties with regional organizations such as the African Union and the European Union, and other international mechanisms.
“Once our Office sounds the alarm, it indicates that the threshold is about to be crossed,” he said.
“Our role is not to determine genocide but to prevent it,” Mr. Beyani emphasized, highlighting that his Office leaves it to international courts to determine whether the crime has been committed.
breaking the silence
The Special Adviser also underlined the important role of courts and justice in protecting vulnerable people.
“The only thing that needs to be done in the context of addressing atrocities is to make those involved in conflicts aware that they are being watched and monitored,” Beyani said.
One example is the International Criminal Court’s conviction of Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga in 2012 for recruiting child soldiers. This led other warlords to publicly denounce the recruitment of children.
He also made reference to the provisional measures of the International Court of Justice issued under the obligation to prevent genocide in the application of the Genocide Convention in Gaza, in the case of South Africa versus Israel.
Among other cases, the ICJ will next year hear the full case brought by Gambia against Myanmar, also on the application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
“Prevention includes accountability,” said the Special Adviser.
Governments and internet companies are failing to address the challenges of online hate.
Emerging threats
Among the emerging threats that Mr. Beyani’s Office monitors are disinformation and hate speech. His Office works with technology companies like Meta and Google to address online incitement, and with faith and community leaders to counter hate narratives at the local level.
Environmental degradation and climate change are also becoming catalysts for conflict. He said the Security Council was right to consider environmental degradation a security risk, as it did during a debate on November 6: “We are seeing resource-based tensions, from the Sahel to small island states at risk of submergence. Climate change itself is not causal, but it amplifies other risk factors.”
The advisor noted that indigenous communities, often the subject of disputes over land and natural resources, are among the groups most in need of protection. “Extractive industries and deliberate actions against them put them at enormous risk,” he said. “Their identity and way of life make them particularly vulnerable.”
Despite the gravity of his mandate, the Special Adviser remains focused on diplomacy and prevention over public condemnation. “This Office was designed to silently participate, advise the Secretary General and the Security Council and make public statements when necessary,” he explained. “States see it as a threat in some aspects.”
Looking ahead, the Special Adviser highlighted that prevention requires both memory and action.
“The commemoration of past genocides reminds us of the UN’s founding promise of ‘never again’ and the foundation on which the Genocide Convention stands,” he said, highlighting preparations for the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime on December 9. “But remembering alone is not enough. We must strengthen our tools, build trust and act early.”