November 13, 2026
Your Excellency:
On behalf of the American Jewish Committee, in advance of consideration of measures in the UN General Assembly’s Third Committee, we write to encourage your government to support resolutions that condemn egregious human rights violations committed by the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation, and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
Draft resolution L.39, “Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran,” which the Third Committee will consider on November 18, unequivocally condemns the unprecedented violence carried out by the Iranian regime in response to recent protests, including its horrific mass killing of protesters in January 2026, large-scale arbitrary arrests and detentions, and the arbitrary use of the death penalty. It also expresses alarm about the Iranian regime’s gross abuses against women and girls, dissenters, and human rights defenders, foreign and dual nationals, and others; the widespread use of transnational repression; and the increasing prevalence of violations and abuses against religious minorities, in particular Baha’is, as well as heightened antisemitism and targeted attacks on Jewish communities.
We also urge your government to vote in favor of draft resolution L.40, “Situation of human rights in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine,” which will be considered on November 18. This resolution appropriately condemns Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and reports of widespread serious violations by Russia in Ukraine. These include the widespread forcible transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia; intensified militarization, indoctrination and forced assimilation of Ukrainian children and youths; persecution and discrimination against religious minorities; and extrajudicial killings, torture, and arbitrary detention of Ukrainians, including prisoners of war and civilian detainees.
Finally, we reiterate our support for the Third Committee’s condemnation of the longstanding, systematic, and widespread denial of human rights by the Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea, addressed in draft resolution L.38, which will be considered on November 18. This resolution rightfully condemns the regime’s maintenance of an extensive system of political prison camps, “re-education” and labor camps, and detention centers in which vast numbers of people are arbitrarily deprived of liberty and subjected to torture and inhumane conditions. It further condemns the regime’s acts of transnational repression and pervasive and severe restrictions that affect North Korea’s entire population, such as the regime’s denial of religious freedom, which it enforces through harsh punishment and the practice of guilt by association.
Thank you for your attention to these concerns and for your support of initiatives at the UNGA’s Third Committee to condemn the commission of serious human rights violations that offend our shared values and threaten regional and international security.
