Member states of the United Nations voted Wednesday to remove Iran from the body’s Commission on the Status of Women following a U.S.-led effort to oust the Islamic Republic that notoriously limits women’s rights.
Twenty-nine countries voted in favor, with eight voting against and 16 abstaining, Reuters reported. The removal is seen as a win for the Biden administration, which has long called for Iran to be taken off the committee. Iran was backed by U.S. adversaries like China and Russia. Some of the states that abstained were reportedly wary of setting a precedent of removing countries from U.N. committees at the behest of Washington.
NEWS: UN Member States just voted to remove Iran from the Commission on the Status of Women.
Iranian women and activists called on us to do this – and today, we got it done.
— Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield (@USAmbUN) December 14, 2022
Others questioned why Iran was being singled out when there are a number of human rights abusers sitting on various U.N. panels, including others on the Commission on the Status of Women like Afghanistan and Pakistan. India, the Solomon Islands and Indonesia were among the countries which abstained.
Calls to remove Iran from the Commission intensified in recent months as the Islamic regime has cracked down on protests in favor of women’s rights and regime change. The protests began after the country’s “morality police” detained 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who later died while in government custody.
A number of protestors have reportedly been killed by government forces, while some activists have been sentenced to death and executed for protest-related incidents. Last month, the UN Human Rights Council voted to investigate potential violations by Iran in response to the protests.
The U.S. welcomed the results of the vote Wednesday. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan issued a statement calling it “historic.” (RELATED: White House Sounds Alarm On ‘Unprecedented’ Military Partnership Between Iran And Russia)
“The United States is working with our allies and partners around the world to hold Iran accountable for the abuses it is committing against its own people, notably peaceful protesters, women and girls, and the violence it is enabling against the Ukrainian people, as well as its destabilizing actions throughout the Middle East region,” he said. “The recent horrifying executions in Tehran only strengthen our resolve to expand this growing consensus and pursue all possible mechanisms of accountability against the Iranian regime and its officials responsible for these atrocities.”