UNITED Nations human rights chiefs have called on Washington to end its unilateral coercive sanctions regime which they said was blocking development and punishing innocent people across the world.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council said that the US measures were denying people access to basic necessities, including food and water.

“The precautionary principle should be applied by states when unilateral sanctions are taken to avoid any negative humanitarian impact on the whole scope of human rights, including the right to development,” the experts said. “The punishment of innocent civilians must end.

“Sanctions hold countries back from development, they hold back people as well, and in a globalising world, that hurts everyone,” they added.

Washington has caused economic misery for entire populations through its sanctions regime which has targeted a whole host of countries including Syria, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba.

The UN experts – including special rapporteur Alena Douhan – said the people of those countries “cannot get essential services like electricity, housing, water, gas and fuel, let alone medicine and food.”

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has accused Washington of using sanctions as an economic siege to starve the people into submission in a bid to overthrow the Damascus government.

The country has been plunged into an economic crisis with the currency falling in value and the US-imposed Caesar Act sanctions placing restrictive measures preventing companies from trading with Syria.

In Venezuela a raft of sanctions have been implemented with the aim of ousting democratically elected President Nicolas Maduro. 

Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza reiterated his call for the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate US officials over the impact of the punitive measures on Wednesday.

“UN human rights experts deem the sanctions against Venezuela and other countries a punishment against the innocent population.

“There is no doubt that this is a crime against humanity that should be investigated by the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court,” he said.

Most famously Cuba has faced a crippling US economic blockade for the past six decades as Washington seeks to strangle the socialist island’s economy. 

It is estimated to have cost as much as $1.1 trillion, according to a 2015 Al Jazeera report into the impact of the sanctions.

In June a total of 184 countries voted in favour of a motion at the UN General Assembly demanding an end to the blockade for the 29th year in a row. The US and Israel voted against.