UNITED NATIONS, March 1 (UPI) -- The U.N. General Assembly Tuesday suspended Libya from the Human Rights Council for what it called human-rights violations under Moammar Gadhafi.
The vote came in response to a request Friday by the rights council, based in Geneva, Switzerland, following reports that forces loyal to Gadhafi were carrying out violent repression against protesters demanding Gadhafi's ouster, the U.N. News Center said.
Venezuela expressed reservations about Tuesday's vote, arguing that an investigation should be conducted first, but did not otherwise try to block a vote, the report said.
General Assembly President Joseph Deiss said before the vote Tuesday the Gadhafi regime had committed "flagrant human-rights violations," and respect for rights is essential to security and development.
"The credibility of the international community, the United Nations General Assembly, the Security Council and the Human Rights Council is at stake in ensuring that these rights are respected and that human-rights violations are punished," Deiss said.
The Security Council has already imposed sanctions on the Gadhafi government and requested an International Criminal Court investigation into possible crimes against humanity.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, speaking to the General Assembly prior to the vote, said U.N. responses to the crisis in Libya send a message "of great consequence within the region and beyond: that there is no impunity, that those who commit crimes against humanity will be punished, that fundamental principles of justice and accountability shall prevail."
