INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The United States and Britain announced plans Monday to seek Russia's suspension from the UN Human Rights Council following allegations
to now match our words with action," U.S
ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a tweet Monday."We cannot let a member state that is subverting every
principle we hold dear to continue to participate" in the council, she said
A vote on Russia's suspension could be held by Thursday, according to the U.S."Given strong evidence of war crimes, including reports of
mass graves and heinous butchery in Bucha, Russia cannot remain a member of the UN Human Rights Council
Russia must be suspended," said British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.Russia reacted furiously
"This is unbelievable," said Vassily Nebenzia, the Russian ambassador to the UN
"What the West is trying to do with Russia, trying to exclude it from multilateral forums we are having in the world..
talks," he said.Journalists over the weekend found corpses in civilian clothes, some with their hands bound, in the town of Bucha outside
Ukraine's capital after Kyiv's forces retook it from Russia's army.Bucha Mayor Anatoly Fedoruk said many "were shot, killed, in the back of
the head."The scale of the killings is still being pieced together, but Ukrainian prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova said 410 civilian
bodies had been recovered so far.The UN's human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said the images from Bucha point to "possible war crimes."The
Kremlin denied Russian forces killed civilians, and alleged that the images of dead bodies in Bucha are "fakes."Suspending Russia from the
two-thirds majority, which the United States and Britain believe they can secure.Such an action has been taken in the past against
Libya.Asked at the daily UN press briefing about UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' position on suspending Russia from the Human Rights
Council, his deputy spokesman Farhan Haq appeared embarrassed."We will leave it to the member states to decide," he said."What the worry has
been on this side is the precedent being set," he added, declining to explain further."Russia should not have a position of authority in
that body, nor should we allow Russia to use its seat on the Council as a tool of propaganda to suggest they have a legitimate concern about
