A Chinese diplomat repeatedly interrupted a brief speech by prominent Chinese dissident in a failed attempt to block him from speaking at the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Seconds into his talk, the dissident, Yang Jianli, was cut off as he questioned the Chinese Communist Party's right to represent China at the U.N. body.

Chen Cheng of China's diplomatic mission stepped in and insisted that Yang's intervention, on an invitation from U.N.-accredited advocacy group UN Watch, "has seriously affected the reputation of council, and it should be firmly opposed."

Tuesday's standoff came during debate about the Vienna Declaration and Program of Action, which among other things says non-governmental organizations "should be free to carry out their human rights activities, without interference." </s> Yang Jianli, a dissident in exile in the US, was disrupted seconds into his remarks by Chen Cheng of China’s diplomatic mission

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A Chinese diplomat repeatedly interrupted a speech by a prominent Chinese dissident to block him from addressing the UN human rights council, in a failed attempt that bared China’s sensitivity on human rights.

Yang Jianli, a dissident in exile in the United States, was disrupted seconds into his remarks as he questioned the Chinese Communist party’s right to represent China at the UN body. Yang was invited to appear before the human rights council meeting by UN-accredited advocacy group UN Watch.

Chen Cheng of China’s diplomatic mission stepped in and insisted that Yang’s intervention “seriously affected the reputation of council, and it should be firmly opposed”.

Yang went on to cite events from decades of recent Chinese history, including the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution and the crackdown on the Falun Gong and democratic movements.

“Millions of people have died,” he said.

Chen interrupted again, appealing to the chair to “rule against his speaking”.

Xi Jinping warns he is ready to 'fight bloody battles' against China's enemies Read more

Invited to continue speaking instead, Yang warned that China “will return to the road of personal dictatorship” to control speech and crack down on activists, churches in Xinjiang and Tibet. He did not elaborate in the time-limited address.

Chen insisted that Yang was speaking outside the topic of the session. Both spoke in Chinese, and their comments were translated.

Yang participated in the pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square in 1989 and served five years in prison in China.

Tuesday’s conflict came during debate about the Vienna declaration and program of action, which says non-governmental organizations “should be free to carry out their human rights activities, without interference”. </s> Chinese diplomat repeatedly interrupted a speech by a prominent Chinese dissident in a failed attempt to block him from addressing the UN Human Rights Council.

Yang Jianli, a dissident in exile in the United States, was disrupted seconds into his remarks on Tuesday as he questioned the Chinese Communist Party’s right to represent China at the UN body. Yang was invited to appear before the Human Rights Council meeting by UN-accredited advocacy group UN Watch.

Chen Cheng of China’s diplomatic mission stepped in and insisted that Yang’s intervention “seriously affected the reputation of council, and it should be firmly opposed.”

But Yang went on to cite events from decades of recent Chinese history, including the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution and the crackdown on the Falun Gong and democratic movements.

“Millions of people have died,” he said.

Chen interrupted again, appealing to the chair to “rule against his speaking.”

Invited to continue speaking instead, Yang warned that China “will return to the road of personal dictatorship” to control speech and crackdown on activists, churches in Xinjiang and Tibet. He did not elaborate in the time-limited address.

Chen insisted that Yang was speaking outside the topic of the session. Both spoke in Chinese, and their comments were translated.

Yang participated in the pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square in 1989 and served five years in prison in China.

Tuesday’s conflict came during debate about the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, which says non-governmental organisations “should be free to carry out their human rights activities, without interference.” </s> BEIJING (Reuters) - China expressed regret on Wednesday over a U.S. decision to withdraw from the U.N. Human Rights Council, with state media saying the image of the United States as a defender of rights was “on the verge of collapse”.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley delivers remarks to the press together with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, announcing the U.S.'s withdrawal from the U.N's Human Rights Council at the Department of State in Washington, U.S., June 19, 2018. REUTERS/Toya Sarno Jordan

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley announced the decision to pull out of the council on Tuesday over what she said was chronic bias against Israel and a lack of reform.

Rights group have criticized the decision as sending a message that the United States was turning a blind eye to abuses across the world.

“China expresses regret at the U.S. decision to withdraw from the U.N. Human Rights Council,” foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a regular briefing.

“China will continue, working with all sides, to make its contribution to the healthy development of human rights around the world via constructive dialogue and cooperation,” he added.

Asked about U.S. criticism of China’s rights record, Geng said the United States was ignoring the facts and that anyone who was without prejudice could see the enormous progress China had made on rights.

The official publication of China’s top anti-graft watchdog said in a commentary on Wednesday the U.S. decision to leave the council “has put the American peoples’ boastful image of being a defender of human rights on the verge of collapse”.

The separation of immigrant families on the U.S.-Mexico border showed the hypocrisy of the United States and that it “cannot and should not” criticize other countries’ rights record, it said.

Human rights have long been a source of tension between the world’s two largest economies, especially since 1989, when the United States imposed sanctions on China after a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators around Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.

China regularly rejects criticism of its human rights record and points to its success at lifting millions out of poverty.

But the ruling Communist Party brooks no political dissent and since President Xi Jinping took office dozens of rights lawyers and activists have been arrested or jailed in a crackdown activists say is worse than any in decades.

Beijing also releases an annual report lambasting the United States for its rights problems, invariably citing racism, political standards and gun violence. </s> WASHINGTON (AFP, NYTIMES) - Washington on Tuesday (July 11) invited cancer-stricken Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo to come to the United States for medical treatment, renewing its call for Beijing to free him.

The next day, China's state-backed Global Times newspaper slammed the calls by Western forces, branding them "a political charade".

"Western forces are not persuasive in reasoning. What they care about is not Liu's treatment, but transferring him abroad. This is a political charade," it said.

The op-edalso reiterated that the calls for Mr Liu to be allowed to go abroad were an interference of China's domestic affairs.

US State Department spokesman Heather Nauert said on Tuesday that the US continues to call on the Chinese authorities to grant Mr Liu full parole and also for the release of his wife, Madam Liu Xia.

"We continue to call on China to release him so that he can receive medical treatment wherever he desires. If it's in the United States, I think we would certainly welcome that," she said.

Ms Nauert said Washington was pleased that US and German medical experts have been able to visit the terminally-ill cancer patient.

"The State Department was involved in helping to get a US doctor... to China to be able to take a look at him," she said. "There was also a German doctor that was in attendance, too."

Ms Nauert added that Washington is worried not only about the welfare of Mr Liu, 61, but of other dissidents held by China.

"The State Department remains deeply concerned about the continued detention of at least seven defence lawyers and rights defenders, and reports of their alleged torture and denial of access to independent legal counsel," she said.

"We urge the Chinese authorities to immediately release those still in detention and drop the charges."

Mr Liu's heath has deteriorated since authorities revealed last month (June) that he had been transferred from prison to a hospital due to late-stage liver cancer.

But Chinese officials have ignored calls by international human rights groups, Western governments and local activists to grant the prominent democracy advocate's wish to be treated abroad.

Mr Liu has an abdominal infection, organ dysfunction and he went into septic shock, the hospital said in a statement on its website.

He is undergoing kidney dialysis, and is getting anti-infection and organ function support therapy.

On Wednesday, an op-ed in Global Times said the core of the issue is that Mr Liu is a cancer patient and a convicted criminal under China's law.

"Chinese prison authorities are obliged to provide Liu with the best treatment they can, while retaining the responsibility to supervise Liu in accordance with the law," it said.

"Foreign governments and institutes can give medical advice, but they must respect the final decision by China's prison authorities and medics."

On Monday (July 10), a spokesman for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geng Shuang, denounced calls for Mr Liu to be freed to go abroad as "meddling" by foreigners, even though the two foreign doctors, who were invited by the government to examine Mr Liu said that he could travel and that their hospitals would treat him.

Mr Liu was arrested in 2008 after co-writing Charter 08, a bold petition that called for the protection of basic human rights and reform of China's one-party Communist system.

He was sentenced to 11 years in prison in December 2009 for "subversion".

At the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo in 2010, he was represented by an empty chair. </s> The Iranian government has hard evidence that the violence in the ongoing protests in the country is incited from abroad, Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Gholam Ali Khoshroo said during an emergency UN Security Council meeting."We have hard evidence of the violence in Iran by a handful of the protesters, in some cases resulting in the deaths of policeman and security officers, being very clearly directed from abroad," Khoshroo said on Friday.Iranian Envoy to the UN Gholam Ali Khoshroo also stressed that"The move by the United States to bring to this council protests in Iran by some of our citizens for legitimate grievances some exacerbated by none other than US itself in its dereliction of its obligation under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA] is an abuse of its power as a permanent member and an abuse of the council itself," Khoshroo said on Friday.Moreover, Khoshoroo pointed outIran should be the one calling for an investigation into the role of foreign elements instigating violence in the country, Khoshroo concluded.The UN Security Council meeting was called by the United States which has taken an active interest in what it sees as attempts by Iranian authorities to crack down on pro-democracy protesters. The US envoy to the UN, Nikki Haley, said the world was watching what the Islamic Republic was doing.Meanwhile,Discussing this domestic situation of Iran by the Council is a practice that is not in line with the Council's responsibilities," he said at the meeting. "China takes note of the recent domestic developments of Iran," Wu admitted, adding Beijing trusted the Iranian government with doing what needs to be done to keep the country stable. He stressedThe Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia stressed it is unacceptable to use "bogus pretext" to include internal political issues of Iran in the agenda of meeting. Nebenzia said the domestic political situation has stabilized in recent days. He added the"It is obvious for everyone that the topic chosen today does not fall within the prerogatives established by the UN charter," Nebenzia said. "The real reason for convening today's meeting is not an attempt to protect human rights or promote the interest of Iranian people, but rather an attempt to use the current moment to continue to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action."Russian Ambassador emphasized that the United States is undermining the authority of the United Nations Security Council by calling a special meeting on protests in Iran."Today we are witnessing how the United States is abusing the platform of the Security Council," Nebenzia stated on Friday. "Why the United States, a permanent member of the Security Council, is undermining the authority of the Security Council as the main body which is responsible for maintaining international peace and security?"If the Security Council follows the logic of the United States, they should have called meetings after violent protests in Ferguson, Missouri or waves of unrest in any Western country, Nebenzia said.The envoy urged the Security Council members to allow Iran to deal with its own problems and rather focus on crisis situations in Lybia, North Korea, Syria.Meanwhile, theso that the Iranian people may see its benefits, UK Ambassador to the UN Matthew John Rycroft said during a Security Council meeting."The United Kingdom remains fully committed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, it is one of the international community's greatest successes in recent memory, we welcome Iran's compliance with its nuclear commitments," Rycroft said on Friday. "We encourage all member states to uphold their commitments so that the Iranian people see the tangible benefits of this deal."From the perspective of finding a solution to the "flash points" in the crisis in the Middle East , the UN Security Council must remain fully committed to upholding the nuclear agreement with Iran and must fully promote its implementation, French Ambassador Francois Delattre said during the emergency meeting.In October 2017, US President Donald Trump refused to confirm to the US Congress that Iran strictly abides the nuclear deal but at the same time he did not question compliance on the international level. The United States has since delivered additional sanctions on Iran.However, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned during a UN Security Council meeting on Friday that Iran has been put on notice that the world is watching how Tehran handles the ongoing anti-government protests."The Iranian regime is now on notice. The world will be watching what you do," Haley said.The UN Security Council briefing on Iranian protests was another foreign policy flop by the administration of US President Donald Trump , Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Friday.Another FP blunder for the Trump administration," he tweeted.Russia, China, and France - three of the body's five permanent members - spoke against the US move to raise anti-government protests in Iran at a UN meeting, saying they did not pose a risk to international peace or security.They and the United Kingdom also spoke in favor of keeping the 2015 deal with Tehran in place. Russia's Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia accused the United States of calling the briefing to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which saw Iran scale back its nuclear activities in return for sanctions easing. President Trump has called it the worst deal ever.The Iranian people have taken to the streets in major cities in the country since December 28, 2017, to protest against unemployment, poverty, rising cost of living and policies of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. At least 20 people have reportedly been killed and 450 have been detained, according to published reports. </s> The Latest: UN rights chief blocked from speaking on Syria

BEIRUT (AP) — The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local):

Western nations on the U.N. Security Council and their supporters have quickly organized an informal briefing by the U.N. human rights chief on Syria after a Russian-led protest blocked him from addressing a formal council meeting.

France's U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre told reporters after a procedural vote that Russia called for prevented High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein from addressing an open meeting in the council that he would deliver the same address at the informal meeting late Monday afternoon.

Delattre criticized Russia for refusing any discussion of human rights in the Security Council when rights violations in Syria "are at their very peak."

Russian deputy ambassador Gennady Kuzmin had argued that human rights have nothing to do with the council's mandate of ensuring international peace and security.

But Sweden's U.N. Ambassador Olof Skoog insisted that "human rights and peace and security are intimately linked."

And Britain's deputy U.N. ambassador Jonathan Allen said Russia "doesn't want the truth of ... the appalling human rights abuses taking place." But he said: "We mustn't let them silence us.

The U.N. human rights chief has been blocked from speaking to the Security Council about the situation in Syria after Russia, backed by China and others, protested that the U.N. body charged with ensuring international peace and security should not be discussing human rights.

At the start of Monday afternoon's council meeting that was to be addressed by High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, Russia demanded a procedural vote on whether the meeting should be held.

Under council rules, nine "yes" votes are required.

After the issue was put to a vote, the result was 8 countries in favor, 4 against and 3 abstentions. So the meeting was canceled.

It was a very rare defeat on a procedural issue at an open council meeting.

But it reflected deep divisions at the Security Council over seven years of Syrian conflict that has involved President Bashar Assad's key ally Russia and Western nations including the U.S. and other supporters of the Syrian opposition.

Turkey's president has vowed to expand military operations across northern Syria and even into neighboring Iraq after his forces drove Kurdish fighters from the northern Syrian town of Afrin.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Monday that the two-month-long Afrin campaign was the "most important phase" of the military operation launched on Jan. 20, which is aimed at driving Syrian Kurdish forces out of areas along the border.

Turkey views the Syrian Kurdish militiamen as terrorists because of their links to Kurdish insurgents fighting inside Turkey.

Erdogan said Turkish troops and allied Syrian forces would now press eastward, toward the town of Manbij and areas east of the Euphrates River, including Ayn al-Arab, the Arabic name for the Kurdish town of Kobani. Those areas are controlled by U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish forces, and U.S. troops are stationed there.

The U.N.'s humanitarian coordinator in Syria is appealing for help to provide aid to tens of thousands of civilians affected by the fighting outside the Syrian capital and in the northern town of Afrin.

Ali al-Za'tari says the civilians are in "desperate need," and are "tired, hungry, traumatized and afraid."

Government forces are close to capturing the eastern Ghouta region outside Damascus, where they have waged a fierce monthlong air and ground campaign. Turkish troops and allied Syrian forces seized Afrin from Kurdish fighters on Sunday after a two-month offensive. The fighting in both places has killed hundreds of civilians and displaced tens of thousands.

Al-Za'tari says the U.N., the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and other partners are "fully mobilized to deliver aid on the spot," but require permissions and security guarantees.

The Syrian government has regularly blocked the delivery of aid to opposition-held areas.

Syria has condemned Turkey's capture of the northern Syrian town of Afrin from Kurdish forces.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry, in messages sent to the U.N. Security Council and secretary general on Monday, called on Turkey to withdraw its forces immediately from Syrian territories.

Turkish troops and allied Syrian opposition forces seized Afrin from a Kurdish militia on Sunday after a nearly two-month military campaign.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the move was "illegal" and called it an invasion.

Turkey views the Kurdish forces as terrorists because of their links to Kurdish insurgents inside Turkey. Ankara denies it is invading or occupying Syrian land, saying it is only removing militants from areas along the border.

Syrian President Bashar Assad's office has released videos showing the president driving himself to visit his forces at the battle for eastern Ghouta, just outside the capital, Damascus.

The videos, released late Sunday and early Monday, show the president calm and assured. Other drivers on the road give no indication of knowing who is behind the wheel of the Honda sedan.

Assad's forces in eastern Ghouta appear close to clinching one of their most significant victories against rebels in seven years of civil war.

As he drove, he narrated his route to the camera and gave his thoughts on the battle. He said the images of civilians crossing over by the thousands to government authorities in eastern Ghouta showed that his government was still popular with his people and still possessed the "legitimacy" to rule.

Eastern Ghouta has been under a crippling siege and heavy bombardment for weeks, with civilians packing into underground shelters. Some 1,500 civilians have been killed in the last month.

The U.S. State Department says it is "deeply concerned" over the humanitarian situation following Turkey's capture of the town of Afrin in northern Syria from Kurdish forces.

Spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement Monday that the offensive forced the majority of the predominantly Kurdish population of Afrin to evacuate from the town.

She said the U.S. calls on all parties to the conflict to allow humanitarian groups to access the displaced and develop a program for their safe and voluntary return.

Nauert said the fighting in Afrin has distracted from the fight against Islamic State militants, allowing the extremists to begin to reconstitute in some areas.

She said the U.S. is committed to its NATO ally Turkey and its security concerns, and is also committed to the fight against IS with its partners, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

Nauert said U.S. officials have expressed their concern to Turkish officials about the situation in Afrin.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says that after victory in Syria's Afrin region, his country will expand its military operations into other Kurdish-held areas in Syria as well as to Iraq's Sinjar region.

Speaking at a ceremony for judicial appointments in Ankara, Erdogan said troops would target the Syrian city of Manbij, as well as Ayn al-Arab, also known as Kobani, and other towns along the border to the east of the Euphrates River. Those areas are controlled by U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish forces and U.S. troops are stationed there.

Erdogan said Turkish troops could also cross into Iraq to drive out Kurdish militants from the region of Sinjar, if the Iraqi government is reluctant to oust militants from the area. Turkey says the region is becoming a headquarters for outlawed Kurdish rebels who have been fighting an insurgency in Turkey's southeast since 1984.

Erdogan said "one night, we could suddenly enter Sinjar."

He insisted Turkey had no intention of "invading" Syria, saying it was merely clearing the border area of terrorists.

Syria's Kurdish militia says a British woman who had joined their ranks to fight in the northern town of Afrin has been killed in a Turkish airstrike.

Nisrin Abdullah, spokeswoman of the Kurdish female militia known as YPJ, said on Monday that Anna Campbell was killed last Thursday.

She is the first foreign national to die in the battle for Afrin. She is also the first British female fighter and the eighth Briton to die fighting alongside the Kurdish militia in Syria. The Press Association says Campbell was 26 years old from Lewes, East Sussex.

Macer Gifford, a Briton who travelled with Campbell, said they arrived last May to eastern Syria, where they joined the U.S-backed Kurdish militia to fight against Islamic State militants. Gifford returned home after the fall of the city of Raqqa last summer.

Gifford told The Associated Press via Twitter that Campbell, an animal rights activist, "was a lovely girl. Very opinionated and determined."

He also says: "She loved the YPJ and the last I saw of her was her leaving to join them."

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag says Turkey does not aim to invade the Syrian town of Afrin and will hand it over to "its real owners."

Bozdag made the comments on Monday, a day after Turkish troops and Ankara-allied Syrian opposition forces captured Afrin.

The town was taken nearly two month after Turkey launched its offensive to clear Afrin and surrounding districts of a Syrian Kurdish militia that Ankara considers to be a "terrorist" group, allied with Turkey's outlawed Kurdish rebels.

Bozdag says" ''We are not invaders. The aim of our offensive is to clear the region of terror."

He says the Syrian Kurdish forces retreated from Afrin because "they were afraid ... you see this very clearly when you look at ammunition and weapons that they left behind."

He says the Kurdish fighters had left booby traps and other explosives inside Afrin.

The European Union has slapped sanctions on a senior Syrian military officer and three scientists accused of links to the development and use of chemical weapons against civilians.

EU headquarters said on Monday that the four work at the Scientific Studies and Research Center, a Syrian government agency the EU says produces chemical weapons and missiles to deliver them.

The center has been under EU sanctions since Dec. 2011.

The move brings to 261 the number of people targeted by an EU travel ban and asset freeze over the crackdown on Syrian civilians and support for the government of President Bashar Assad or associating with certain government officials.

A further 67 entities — often companies, agencies and organizations — have had their assets frozen.

A senior Syrian Kurdish official says Turkey's offensive on the Syrian town of Afrin is an "occupation" that endangers the rest of northern Syria.

Aldar Khalil, a leading Kurdish official, on Monday condemned Turkey for the assault and for raising the Turkey's flag in a Syrian town.

He says Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking to spread his influence in Syria as a way of restoring the Ottoman empire's former influence.

He says: "The whole of northern Syria is in danger."

Turkish troops and Syrian opposition fighters allied with Ankara captured Afrin on Sunday, nearly two months after Turkey began its offensive on the enclave.

Erdogan, who first launched military operations in Syria in 2016, has repeatedly said Turkey will not allow a "terror corridor" along its border and has vowed to push eastward in Syria after Afrin, to prevent the Kurdish militia from linking up territories it controls in eastern and western Syria.

The European Union's top diplomat is criticizing Turkey over its military offensive in a northern Syrian town and is calling on Ankara to ensure that fighting eases in the conflict-torn country.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini says: "I am worried about this."

Mogherini told reporters in Brussels on Monday that international efforts in Syria are supposed to be "aiming at de-escalating the military activities and not escalating them."

She urged Turkey, Russia and Iran to guarantee that conflict "de-escalation zones" are established as promised, to "guarantee that that is what happens on the ground."

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Sunday the capture of the town of Afrin, previously controlled by the Kurdish militia known as the People's Defense Units, or YPG.

Turkey's state-run news agency says a booby trap bomb reportedly left by Syrian Kurdish fighters in the northern Syrian town of Afrin has killed 11 people — seven civilians and four Turkish-backed fighters.

Anadolu Agency says the explosion occurred late on Sunday in a four-story building that Turkish-backed Syrian opposition forces were clearing for explosives.

Turkish troops and Syrian opposition fighters allied with Ankara marched into Afrin on Sunday, nearly two months after Turkey began its offensive on the enclave to drive out a Syrian Kurdish militia. Ankara considers the militia an extension of its own insurgency.

Kurdish officials and a war monitor say some pockets of resistance remain in the town of Afrin but the Kurdish militia, known as YPG, has largely withdrawn.

A Syria war monitoring group says Turkish-allied militiamen are looting the northern Syrian town of Afrin after the Turkish military and allied Syrian fighters seized control of it.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday the looting began on Sunday, after the Turkish and allied Syrian forces marched into the town center and raised their flags there — nearly two months after the offensive on the Kurdish enclave started.

The troops faced little resistance from the Kurdish militia, which withdrew, vowing a "new phase" of guerrilla tactics against Turkish troops and their allied fighters.

The Observatory, which monitors Syria's war through a network of activists on the ground, described extensive looting of shops, homes and cars in Afrin.

It's unclear what Turkey plans after the capture of Afrin. </s> "We have hard evidence of the violence in Iran by a handful of the protesters, in some cases resulting in the deaths of policeman and security officers, being very clearly directed from abroad," Khoshroo said on Friday.

Iranian Envoy to the UN Gholam Ali Khoshroo also stressed that the United States is abusing its power as a member of the United Nations Security Council and as a permanent member of the council by calling a meeting to discuss the protests in Iran.

"The move by the United States to bring to this council protests in Iran by some of our citizens for legitimate grievances some exacerbated by none other than US itself in its dereliction of its obligation under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA] is an abuse of its power as a permanent member and an abuse of the council itself," Khoshroo said on Friday.

Moreover, Khoshoroo pointed out instigators based in the United States and Europe have been seen inciting violence during the protests in Iran. The instigation has included such activities as encouraging and training people to use Molotov cocktails, capture ammunition depots and stage an armed uprising.

Iran should be the one calling for an investigation into the role of foreign elements instigating violence in the country, Khoshroo concluded.

Meanwhile, China's Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Wu Haitao said Friday his country took note of protests in Iran but believed they were its domestic issue that lay outside of UN’s scope.

"The Iranian situation does not pose any threat to international peace or security nor is it on the agenda of the Security Council. Discussing this domestic situation of Iran by the Council is a practice that is not in line with the Council’s responsibilities," he said at the meeting. "China takes note of the recent domestic developments of Iran," Wu admitted, adding Beijing trusted the Iranian government with doing what needs to be done to keep the country stable. He stressed UN’s interference would not help resolve the issue.

Nebenzia pointed out the real reason for convening the meeting was not a desire to protect human rights or promote the interest of the Iranian people, but rather an attempt to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"It is obvious for everyone that the topic chosen today does not fall within the prerogatives established by the UN charter," Nebenzia said. "The real reason for convening today's meeting is not an attempt to protect human rights or promote the interest of Iranian people, but rather an attempt to use the current moment to continue to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action."

"Today we are witnessing how the United States is abusing the platform of the Security Council," Nebenzia stated on Friday. "Why the United States, a permanent member of the Security Council, is undermining the authority of the Security Council as the main body which is responsible for maintaining international peace and security?"

If the Security Council follows the logic of the United States, they should have called meetings after violent protests in Ferguson, Missouri or waves of unrest in any Western country, Nebenzia said.

The envoy urged the Security Council members to allow Iran to deal with its own problems and rather focus on crisis situations in Lybia, North Korea, Syria.

The UN Security Council briefing on Iranian protests was another foreign policy flop by the administration of US President Donald Trump, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Friday.

"The UNSC rebuffed the US' naked attempt to hijack its mandate. Majority emphasized the need to fully implement the JCPOA and to refrain from interfering in internal affairs of others. Another FP blunder for the Trump administration," he tweeted.

They and the United Kingdom also spoke in favor of keeping the 2015 deal with Tehran in place. Russia’s Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia accused the United States of calling the briefing to undermine the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which saw Iran scale back its nuclear activities in return for sanctions easing. President Trump has called it the worst deal ever.

The Iranian people have taken to the streets in major cities in the country since December 28, 2017, to protest against unemployment, poverty, rising cost of living and policies of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. At least 20 people have reportedly been killed and 450 have been detained, according to published reports. </s> Russia used a procedural vote to halt a United Nations Security Council meeting from taking place Monday on the human rights crisis in Syria -- but other members including the United States outmaneuvered the Russians by calling for an informal meeting.

Russia, which has consistently protected its ally Syria in the council chamber, claimed that the issue of human rights was not a subject on the council’s agenda and forced a vote. The council could not reach nine votes for the meeting to proceed; China, Kazakhstan and Bolivia voted with Russia while the three African members on the council abstained.

While obviously angered by the Russian vote, France, Britain, Sweden and the U.S. called for an informal Security Council meeting where all who wanted to listen to a briefing on the human rights situation in Syria could do so.

At the informal meeting, the U.N. Human Rights commissioner, Prince Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, criticized the Security Council for not doing enough for Syria. “The Security Council has not lived up to the sacrifice of these heroes in Syria, it has not taken decisive action to defend human rights and prevent further loss of life despite the absolutely shameful conduct that has marked this conflict from the outset,” he said.

Al Hussein said the Syrian regime’s siege of Eastern Ghouta “involved pervasive war crimes,” noting “the use of chemical weaponry, enforced starvation as a weapon of warfare and the denial of essential and life-saving aid.”

French Ambassador to the U.N. Francois Delattre, who chaired the meeting, said that just three convoys had gotten through to those in need since U.N. Security Council resolution 2401 passed last month, calling for a humanitarian ceasefire.

U.S. Representative to the U.N. Economic and Social Council Kelley Currie responded, “The depth of depravity to which the Syrian government and its backers will sink is unfathomable. Of course, for a regime that is willing to systematically torture its own people, its own children, starving them is nothing.”

She continued, “The Assad regime, along with its backers in Moscow and Tehran, should immediately adhere to the Resolution 2401 ceasefire, cease their hostilities, and allow unfettered humanitarian access.”

Britain’s U.N. Ambassador Jonathan Allen said Russia’s claim that Human Rights was not a topic for the Security Council was wrong and noted that the ceasefire resolution specifically referenced the importance of human rights and international human rights law.

Allen said he was not surprised that Russia did not want the Security Council to meet on Syria, saying, “The truth of what is happening in Syria is deeply uncomfortable for all who protect Assad.”

One Security Council diplomat from France, which sponsored the informal meeting, tweeted, “@RussiaUN and 6 other countries blocked @UNHumanRights Chief #Zeid delivering his briefing on violations of human rights in #Syria in the Security Council chamber but did NOT stop him from briefing the Security Council members anyway, in a different room, with all 15 members present.”

Earlier Monday, seven members of the Security Council including the U.S., France, the U.K. and Kuwait wrote a letter to the Security Council president expressing their “profound concern about the lack of implementation of Security Council resolution 2401.”

The letter threatened action if there was no immediate change. It said, “If Member States do not implement this resolution, it is imperative that this Council immediately pursue decisive action to achieve a full cessation of hostilities throughout Syria, to facilitate humanitarian access, and to protect the Syrian people.”

Since Security Council Resolution 2401 was passed, some 1,700 civilians have been killed in Eastern Ghouta, according to Syrian monitoring groups. On Monday, opposition groups reported that napalm was unleashed on civilians killing up to 60 people.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley announced last week that the U.S. has been working on a new draft resolution that would seek to implement an immediate ceasefire. So far that draft resolution has not been put up for a vote but diplomats tell Fox News it could come up for a vote sometime this week.
Chinese diplomat Chen Cheng repeatedly interrupts and objects to exiled dissident Yang Jianli's testimony to the United Nations Human Rights Council.