Human Rights Council

UN rights chief says Taliban decree expands executions, deepens repression

The Taliban has restricted women's movements and barred girls from education beyond primary school since coming to power in 2021, via a series of morality laws limiting expression and employment.

An Afghan Taliban fighter sits on a tank near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in Spin Boldak, Kandahar Province, following exchanges of fire between Pakistani and Afghan forces
Jeffrey Epstein is seen in this image released by the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, US, on December 19, 2025 as part of a new trove of documents from its investigations into the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Allegations in Epstein files may amount to 'crimes against humanity,' UN experts say

United Nations Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese listens during a conference on "A Cartography of Genocide: Israel's Conduct in Gaza since October 2023", an investigative project on Israeli-Palestinian conflict, at the Roma Tre University, in Rome, Italy, October 6, 2025.

European countries slam Francesca Albanese, France demands resignation from UN Human Rights Council

A protester waves the pre-Islamic Revolution Iranian flag outside UN headquarters during a United Nations Security Council meeting on Iran in New York on January 15, 2026.

'Nuremberg moment': UN Human Rights Council adopts motion for probe into Iran protest violence


UN opens Israeli war crimes probe following Gaza war, calls for embargo

Following Operation Guardian of the Walls against Gaza terrorist groups, for the first time ever the UNHRC has created a permanent fact-finding mission regarding a UN member state.

Overview of the Human Rights Council one day after the U.S. announced their withdraw at the United Nations in Geneva,

Biden must push to reform UN Human Rights Council - opinion

The Trump administration decided to withdraw from the UNHRC in 2018, calling it “a hypocritical and self-serving organization that makes a mockery of human rights.”

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US joins West in rare criticism of Egypt on human rights abuses

Most of the signatory countries are European, joined by Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

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Step up trials of alleged Syrian war criminals, UN rights chief says

Attempts to refer atrocities in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague for prosecution have failed, Michelle Bachelet said.

SYRIA HAS been destroyed by war.

Nikki Haley condemns Biden decision to rejoin Human Rights Council, UNRWA

"If China, Russia, and Cuba started an organization that celebrated their tyranny in the name of human rights, would the United States want to join?"

US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley delivers remarks to the press announcing the US's withdrawal from the UN's Human Rights Council at the Department of State in Washington, US, June 19, 2018

Rabbis across denominational spectrum urge congressional action on Uighurs

“Your support for this legislation is absolutely crucial to ensure that our fight to prevent further atrocities against this long-persecuted group will be successful.”

A woman wearing a mask with a Uyghur flag takes part in a rally during China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi's visit in Berlin, Germany September 1, 2020.

Can the US under Biden change the UNHRC? - opinion

Only a superpower like the United States can initiate change within the body.

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US rejoins UN Human Rights Council, reversing Trump's withdrawal

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and a senior US diplomat in Geneva announced on Monday that Washington has returned to the UN Human Rights Council as an observer.

UN HIGH COMMISSIONER for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet makes a speech at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, in February.

US pendulum swings back into the UN Human Rights Council - analysis

Republicans snub the UNHRC, which is fixated on Israel and gives cover to dictators. Democrats seek to reform it from the inside. Has either tactic worked?

The empty seat of Israel is pictured during a session of the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, 2019

UN Watch report highlights anti-Israel bias at UN Human Rights Council

Among the claims made against Israel at the UNHRC include Israel hindering the Palestinians in their fight against COVID-19.

UN HIGH COMMISSIONER for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet makes a speech at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, in February.