The UN Human Rights Council will hold an urgent special session on Friday to address the deteriorating human rights situation in Iran.
GENEVA: The United Nations Human Rights Council will hold an urgent special session on Friday concerning the deteriorating human rights situation in Iran.
Council spokesman Pascal Sim confirmed the session follows a request from Britain, Germany, Iceland, Moldova and North Macedonia.
In a letter seen by AFP, the five countries cited credible reports of alarming violence, crackdowns on protesters and violations of international law across Iran.
The request has received backing from 21 of the council’s 47 members, exceeding the one-third threshold required for a special session.
Supporting members include Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, France, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain and Switzerland.
A further 30 observer countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Norway, Poland, Sweden and Ukraine, also back the request.
Iran is facing some of the biggest anti-government protests in its history and a severe crackdown.
Monitors say thousands have been killed amid an unprecedented internet shutdown that has hampered information flow.
The Iran Human Rights NGO says it has verified that 3,428 protesters were killed by security forces, though Iranian officials have not provided an exact toll.
The council already has Iran under scrutiny through an independent international fact-finding mission.
The mission’s mandate, first launched in November 2022, was renewed last April to investigate allegations of serious ongoing violations.
The probe said earlier this month it is reviewing open-source materials, including video footage and photos from the recent protests.
This will be the 39th special session of the Human Rights Council since its founding in 2006.
The last urgent session was held in November on El-Fasher in Sudan.
