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U.S. Elected to New Term on U.N. Human Rights Council

HeadlineNov 13, 2012

The United States has been elected to a new term on the U.N. Human Rights Council, winning another three years. The Obama administration has played an active role at the council after the Bush administration refused to take part. On Monday, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice said the United States is determined to reform the council, saying it is too biased against Israel.

Susan Rice: “The United States is clearly of the view that the Human Rights Council has its flaws, and I’ve just enumerated a couple of them, including its excessive focus on Israel. But it is also a body that is increasingly proving its value, and we’ve been proud to contribute to some of what we think are the finer moments of the Human Rights Council: its approach to Syria, its approach to Sudan, its approach to the situation in Libya with the Commission of Inquiry.”

The U.N. Human Rights Council vote comes just as the United Nations General Assembly is set to approve its annual measure calling for an end to the U.S. embargo on Cuba.

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