The United States will boycott a United Nations tribute on Thursday to Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who was killed earlier this month in a helicopter crash, a U.S. official said, reports UNN with reference to Reuters.
Details
The 193-member U.N. General Assembly traditionally meets to pay tribute to any world leader who was a sitting head of state at the time of their death. The tribute will feature speeches about Raisi.
"We won't attend this event in any capacity," a U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters. The U.S. boycott has not previously been reported.
"The United Nations should be standing with the people of Iran, not memorializing their decades-long oppressor," said the U.S. official. "Raisi was involved in numerous, horrific human rights abuses, including the extrajudicial killings of thousands of political prisoners in 1988."
"Some of the worst human rights abuses on record, especially against the women and girls of Iran, took place during his tenure," the official said.
Iran's mission to the UN in New York declined to comment.
Addition
Raisi, a hardline supporter who was considered a potential successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed when his helicopter crashed in bad weather in the mountains near the border with Azerbaijan on May 19.
On May 20, the UN Security Council observed a minute of silence in memory of the victims of the helicopter crash. Deputy US ambassador to the UN Robert Wood reluctantly rose along with his 14 colleagues.
The United States has expressed its "official condolences" over Raisi's death, the US State Department said on May 20. White House National Security spokesman John Kirby also said that day:"there is no doubt that this was a man who had a lot of blood on his hands.
The administration of US President Joe Biden has been sharply criticized by some Republican members of Congress for expressing their condolences to Iran.
Raisi, 63, was elected president in 2021 and in office ordered tougher moral laws, led a bloody crackdown on anti-government protests, and actively promoted nuclear talks with world powers.