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US rejoins UN human rights council, quickly opposes its approach on Israel
"We have concerns with the council. We will vigorously oppose the council's disproportionate attention on Israel, which includes the council's only standing agenda item targeting a single country," Price said.
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US State Department spokesman Ned Price speaks at his first daily press briefing at the State Department in Washington, DC, on February 2, 2021.
(Agence France Presse/Nicholas Kamm )
T
he United States has concerns with the United Nations Human Rights Council and will oppose its "disproportionate" attention on Israel, State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters on Thursday after the US was elected back to the council.
"We have concerns with the council. We will vigorously oppose the council's disproportionate attention on Israel, which includes the council's only standing agenda item targeting a single country," Price said, quoted by Reuters.
Price added the United States will also press against the election of countries with "egregious human rights records."
Earlier on Thursday, the United States returned to the UN Human Rights Council, three-and-a-half years after its dramatic walk-out -- time seized upon by China to assert wider influence.
The United Nations General Assembly elected 18 new members of the UN's top rights body, with countries kicking off their three-year council term from January 1.
Though member states were chosen in a secret ballot, the election was a non-contest, with 18 candidate countries standing for 18 seats.
Beyond the United States, the other states elected are: Argentina, Benin, Cameroon, Eritrea, Finland, Gambia, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Montenegro, Paraguay, Qatar, Somalia and the United Arab Emirates.
