Iran and countries across the Middle East are using the war as an excuse to clamp down on rights, the UN has warned as it denounced attempts to limit media freedom in Israel and the United States, AFP reports.

“We are witnessing a sharp securitisation of civic space across the region, with severe restrictions imposed by governments on people exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said in a statement.

He also decried “attempts to limit media freedom, such as restrictions imposed by Israeli military censorship authorities, and a threat by the US Federal Communications Commission to revoke broadcast licences for coverage deemed critical of the war”.