Netanyahu urged Trump to quit UN rights group

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told ministers that he was the one that urged US President Donald Trump to quit the UN Human Rights Council, the Jerusalem Post reported Israeli radio saying.

Yesterday, a US envoy issue a veiled warning indicating that the US may consider pulling out of the UN body for what they perceive as its “continued obsession with Israel”.

Netanyahu allegedly told members of his Likud party that he had recommended the US end its participation in the UN body that has been accused of being bias against Israel.

“During the trip I raised the question of whether the United States should remain in the [UN] Human Rights Council,” the radio station quoted Netanyahu as saying of his mid-February visit to Washington to meet Trump and his team.

Read: Minister: I am concerned about decreasing US support for Israel

The prime minister’s statement was reportedly met with scrutiny by Likud MK Anat Berko, who questioned whether it would be more beneficial for the US to remain in the UN body and retain the power to impact votes taken there.

Netanyahu reportedly responded saying: “It’s better to leave! This organisation must be de-legitimised.”

At present the US is one of 47 UN member states that hold seats on the council and have the ability to vote. Former US President George W. Bush boycotted the council over its treatment of Israel, while US President Barack Obama believed US engagement would help the council.

Since the council’s inception in 2006, it has issued more condemnations against Israel than against any other country.

Israel’s critics say that there is no bias against Israel and it would be better served if its politicians were serious about endings their country’s 60-year brutal military occupation instead of wasting its energy on attacking the body responsible for documenting human rights abuse.