An international protest campaign has erupted over Iran being selected to chair a UN human rights forum Thursday despite its history of oppression, torture, and executions.
The forum comes at a time when Iran has shown support for Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas, which conducted a sneak attack on Israel on Oct. 7. More than 1,400 Israelis have died since that day and more than 200 hostages were taken to Gaza.
Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen in recent days have declared war on Israel.
Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, an independent non-governmental human rights organization based in Geneva, is leading the effort to remove Iran from its role as chair.
"No joke: this Thursday, the Islamic Regime in Iran will become Chair of the U.N. Human Rights Council Social Forum," UN Watch posted on social media platform X.
"Say NO to the U.N. legitimizing a regime that beats, blinds, tortures and rapes women for demanding their rights.
"Sign the petition now: http://unwatch.org/StopIRI"
The petition has been signed more than 100,000 times worldwide, De Telegraaf reported.
"I have difficulty understanding what is happening with the UN. They seem to have completely lost touch with reality," wrote Linda Stein, one of the petition signatories.
"This regime is the opposite of human rights," said Simone Sacks, another signatory.
The U.N. Human Rights Council appointed Iran as chair of the forum in May.
European Union foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell defended the appointment as a matter of regional rotation, "in consistency with established UN procedures," UN Watch reported.
However, the regional group to which Iran belongs has held the position four times in the past six years.
"We are calling on Mr. Borrell to take action," Neuer said in a statement. "It's time for all democracies at the UN to stop legitimizing murderous regimes, in violation of the world body's founding principles, and instead to begin holding the perpetrators to account.
"It is unimaginable that on Thursday at the UN human rights council, Ayatollah Khamenei's representative will be holding the gavel, with UN human rights chief Volcker Turk and other dignitaries at his side."
Last month, the U.S. and the U.K. imposed sanctions on Iran near the first anniversary of the death of Kurdish Iranian Mahsa Amini, who died while in custody of Iran's "morality police" for allegedly flouting the Islamic Republic's mandatory dress code.
Amini's murder sparked protests in Iran which led to more than 500 deaths of Iranians at the hands of the regime, Ynetnews reported.
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Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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