Newly appointed U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Jordan’s Prince Zeid Ra’ad Zeid al-Hussein speaks at the Human Rights Council.

Islamic State in Iraq and Syria militants, who now control swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq, intend to create a “house of blood,” the U.N.’s new human rights chief said on Monday, according to Reuters news agency.

In his first address as High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein said ISIS’ actions “reveal only what a Takfiri (extremist) state would look like, should this movement actually try to govern in the future.”

“It would be a harsh, mean-spirited house of blood,” the prince and Jordan’s former ambassador to the U.N. added.

He also called on the world to protect women and religious and ethnic minorities targeted by ISIS militants which he said were “increasingly conjoined conflicts.”

“In particular, dedicated efforts are urgently needed to protect religious and ethnic groups, children – who are at risk of forcible recruitment and sexual violence – and women, who have been the targets of severe restrictions,” al-Hussein warned said in a hard-hitting maiden speech to the U.N. Human Rights Council.

The human rights chief called upon the new Iraqi government and prime minister to consider joining the International Criminal Court (ICC) to ensure accountability for crimes committed there.

 
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