US boycotts UN's tribute for late Iranian president

The US on Thursday boycotted a UN tribute to the late Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who died earlier this month in a helicopter crash.

"The United States will not attend today's United Nations tribute event for President Raisi in any capacity," Nate Evans, spokesman for the US mission to the UN wrote on X.

"The UN should be standing with the people of Iran. 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 took place during his tenure," said Evans.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Dennis Francis, the president of the General Assembly, addressed General Assembly delegates where a minute of silence was observed.

Ahead of the ceremony, people -- holding signs that said: "Shame on UN Holding Memorial For Raisi Butcher of Tehran" -- protested outside UN headquarters in New York.