The United States will stay away from a United Nations meeting on Tuesday where its human rights record under President Donald Trump was due to be examined, drawing criticism from rights groups who say violations have surged to levels not seen in decades.
It is the second year in a row that Washington has skipped its own review under the Universal Periodic Review, a process in which all 193 UN member states submit a report on their rights record every few years for examination by other countries, which then offer non-binding recommendations. Even governments routinely accused of serious abuses take part.
Washington disengaged from the Geneva-based UN Human Rights Council last year, citing what it called an anti-Israel bias. A State Department spokesperson said taking part in the review would imply endorsement of the council’s work, calling it “an irredeemable body” that “makes a mockery of human rights” while pushing “anti-American rhetoric”. The spokesperson did not respond to the allegations about the US record.
The 47-member council itself has not directly criticised Washington’s record, but experts it has appointed have done so, including over migrant deportations. Washington says deportations are carried out in accordance with US immigration law.
UN documents show countries had planned to raise issues on Tuesday including abortion and the death penalty. US and international non-governmental organisations also sent nearly 200 submissions to the UN covering topics from migration to racial discrimination.
“We’ve seen attacks on fundamental human rights and civil liberties unprecedented in generations,” Jamil Dakwar of the American Civil Liberties Union told reporters in Geneva. “Enough is enough.”
Noor Abdalla, wife of pro-Palestinian student activist Mahmoud Khalil, who was held in immigration detention last year, is among campaigners pressing UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk to hold a briefing promptly on the US rights situation, even in Washington’s absence. “When the most powerful government in the world is not held accountable, they think that they can do whatever they want,” she told reporters.
Diplomats were sceptical, given that few states want to confront Washington. The US no-show will likely mean the review is postponed until January, according to a draft UN document and diplomats. Fourteen countries are due to take part in the review process in Geneva this month. In Mr Trump’s first term, the US submitted its review report.
“The view is to leave the door open and hope they come back in two years,” one diplomat said.
Sources: Reuters — “US to skip UN human rights review, drawing censure”, https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/us-skip-un-human-rights-review-drawing-censure-2026-11-10/
